South Florida Quiet After Castro Resigns

Exile leaders stress need for democracy on island nation

By Nick McMaster, Newser Staff

Posted Feb 19, 2008 5:16 PM CST

(Newser) – Few South Florida Cubans bothered to celebrate Fidel Castro's retirement today, the Miami Herald reports. Exile leaders dismissed the power shift to Castro's brother Raul as politics as usual for the island nation. "Just because he has given up a title, doesn't mean he has given up power,'' lawmaker Mario Diaz-Balart said.

"When Cubans are not persecuted for thinking, when there is freedom of speech and real elections by the people of Cuba, that will be change," said radio host Perez Roura.
Still, about 100 people chanted slogans and waved flags in Miami's Little Havana under the eye of federal and Miami authorities. Neither reported the mass migration to Cuba that is expected if the island ever installs a democratic system.

Passing motorists celebrate after it was reported, Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008 in Miami's Little Havana, that Fidel Castro had resigned as president of Cuba. (AP Photo/J. Pat Carter) (Associated Press)

Santiago Portal, left, listens to a Spanish language newscast Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008 for continuing coverage of the resignation of Fidel Castro as Cuba's President in Miami's Little Havana area. (AP Photo/J.... (Associated Press)

A passing motorist celebrates Fidel Castro's resignation as President of Cuba Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008 by playing the tamborine in her car as she drives through the Little Havana area of Miami. (AP Photo/J.... (Associated Press)

Santiago Portal celebrates after word spread in Miami's Little Havana that Fidel Castro had resigned as President of Cuba Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008.(AP Photo/J. Pat Carter) (Associated Press)

Santiago Portal listens to his radio for news of Fidel Castro's resignation, Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008 in Miami's Little Havana neighborhood. (AP Photo/J. Pat Carter) (Associated Press)

A small group stages a street demonstration after news that Cuba's President Fidel Castro had resigned Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008, in Miami's Little Havana neighborhood. (AP Photo/J. Pat Carter) (Associated Press)

A small group of people staged a street demonstration after learning that Cuba's President, Fidel Castro, had resigned Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008, in Miami's Little Havana section. (AP Photo/J. Pat Carter) (Associated Press)

A Cuban-American holds a sign in the Little Havana section of Miami, Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008. Cuban-Americans celebrated the news that ailing leader Fidel Castro had resigned as Cuba's president early... (Associated Press)

Miguel Miguel Gomez Beruvides, right, chants anti-Castro slogans in the Little Havana area in Miami, Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008, as Miguel Saavedra holds an American flag. Cuban-Americans reacted to the... (Associated Press)

Orlando Hernandez sets up Cuban flags for sale in front of the Versailles Restaurant in the "Little Havana" area in Miami, Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008. Local media gathered at the restaurant after ailing leader... (Associated Press)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

More Newser Stories

Miami Cubans Toe Softer Line on Embargo

'Waving the bloody shirt of anti-Castro politics' may be out of date

(NEWSER) - In his speech in Miami this week, John McCain talked the familiar macho talk on Cuba, taking a hard line on the embargo and ridiculing Barack Obama for suggesting that he might open a dialogue with Raul Castro. That may still play with older exiles, Time notes, but a growing number of younger Cuban-Americans don't believe the embargo has any hope of toppling the regime and would like to see more openness in both diplomacy and borders. More»

Huckabee Flip-Flops on Cuba Embargo

Candidate tells exiles he'd strengthen ban he once sought to scrap

(NEWSER) - Mike Huckabee vowed yesterday that he'll strengthen the embargo against Cuba—an about-face from a 2002 letter he wrote President Bush seeking to lift the ban for economic reasons, reports the Los Angeles Times. The change, presented in Miami to a Cuban audience, is just part of the candidate's recent toughened stance on immigration. More»

Marco Rubio 'Embellished Family History'

Cuabn-American senator's parents didn't come to US as exiles

(NEWSER) - Marco Rubio has told many cheering crowds of Cuban Americans that he is the son of exiles forced off the island by Fidel Castro—but the Florida Republican is embellishing the facts, according to the Washington Post . The newspaper examined naturalization records and other documents, and found that Rubio's parents became permanent residents of the US more than two years before Castro's government came to power. Rubio—a rising Tea Party star considered to be a possible 2012 Republican vice presidential candidate—states that his parents "came to America following Fidel Castro’s takeover," in his official biography on his Senate website. More»

Castro Sister: I Worked With CIA

New book reveals Juanita Castro's involvement with US intelligence

(NEWSER) - The sister of Fidel and Raúl Castro worked with the CIA in the 1960s, while the agency was planning to assassinate Fidel and overthrow the revolutionary government. In a new book, Juanita Castro, who now lives in Miami, reveals that she hid opponents of her brothers' regime in her home and that their mother frequently interceded with Raúl to help political prisoners. "The CIA wanted to talk with me," Castro says. "I was left half-shocked, but in any case I told them yes." More»

Miami Cubans Feud Over Havana Peace Concert

Cuban regime using Juanes, critics say

(NEWSER) - Juan Esteban Aristizábal, the Colombian pop star better known as Juanes, has sparked a generational spat among Cuban-Americans by agreeing to sing at a “peace concert” in Havana, the Economist reports. Many elders view the event as the Cuban regime’s latest attempt to manipulate public opinion, but 26-year-old Felice Gorordo, the co-founder of one youth organization, says that "for many of our generation, it’s just not an issue.” More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

South Florida Quiet After Castro Resigns

Exile leaders stress need for democracy on island nation

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

Florida • Fidel Castro • Cuba • Miami • Raul Castro • Little Havana • South Florida • Cuban exiles • Cuban Americans

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

Miami Cubans Toe Softer Line on Embargo

'Waving the bloody shirt of anti-Castro politics' may be out of date

Huckabee Flip-Flops on Cuba Embargo

Candidate tells exiles he'd strengthen ban he once sought to scrap

Marco Rubio 'Embellished Family History'

Cuabn-American senator's parents didn't come to US as exiles

Castro Sister: I Worked With CIA

New book reveals Juanita Castro's involvement with US intelligence

Miami Cubans Feud Over Havana Peace Concert

Cuban regime using Juanes, critics say

About Us

Site

Newser By Users

Community

Site Maps

Tools

More News

What is Newser?

South Florida Quiet After Castro Resigns

Exile leaders stress need for democracy on island nation

Bookmark & Share

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

Florida • Fidel Castro • Cuba • Miami • Raul Castro • Little Havana • South Florida • Cuban exiles • Cuban Americans

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

Miami Cubans Toe Softer Line on Embargo

'Waving the bloody shirt of anti-Castro politics' may be out of date

Huckabee Flip-Flops on Cuba Embargo

Candidate tells exiles he'd strengthen ban he once sought to scrap

Marco Rubio 'Embellished Family History'

Cuabn-American senator's parents didn't come to US as exiles

Castro Sister: I Worked With CIA

New book reveals Juanita Castro's involvement with US intelligence

Miami Cubans Feud Over Havana Peace Concert

Cuban regime using Juanes, critics say

About Us

Site

Newser By Users

Community

Site Maps

Tools

More News

What is Newser?