Only in Miami: Omara Portuondo Compared to the Ku Klux Klan
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- 02 / 22 / 2010
The 80-year-old bolero singer is a legend in Cuba and abroad. She was one of the first members of the D´Aida Quartet, and the special singer of the Buena Vista Social Club.
Manuel Prieres, member of the ultra right group Vigilia Mambisa that used a steamroller to break discs of Juanes and other artists who attended the Peace Without Borders Concert in Havana, announced the cancellation of Omara’s concert as “Great Political Victory of the UNITED PATRIOTIC EXILE, and of the strength of “OUR CUBAN POLITICAL EXILE IN THE USA.”
The capital letters belong to Mr. Prieres, who describes the “institute” he founded as “repository of values, philosophies and conducts to be followed with regards to the Environment: a school of thinking that works to rescue, claim, and cultivate on earth, and for good, all that universalism, internationalism, and now globalism have usurped and intend to keep doing so.”
It seems that Mr. Prieres’ “school of thinking” does not admit that a Cuban figure as Omara Portuondo can freely sing in the United States. I guess that Mr. Prieres’ “environment” excludes the over 11 million Cubans living on the island. It seems to
be an institution of poor education and thinking. According to Miami New Times magazine, the organization Vigilia Mambisa declared that Omara “is accomplice of the regime,” and anti-Cuban activist Emilio Izquierdo Jr. made this incredible comparison: “Bringing Omara Portuondo to Miami is like taking the Ku Klux Klan to Liberty City”.
Perhaps Izquierdo does not know, or means nothing for him, but the Ku Klux Klan is a racist, terrorist organization founded in the US to kill, torture, or intimidate black,Jewish or other groups, including Catholics, peace activists, and unionists.
Omara Portuondo is a Cuban woman of mixed race with unique voice and international prestige resulting from her huge talent.
Comparing her to the Ku Klux Klan is like comparing Luis Posada Carriles to Bola de Nieve.
The man behind the concert, Valiente Concerts, told Miami New Times the suspension was due to financial problems and not to political pressures by some Miami-based factions. Certainly, it has never been an obstacle for the historic exile. For them, their prejudices count.
Source: Cubanow
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