April 4th in History: MLK, Beyonce, and Jay-Z

Beyonce has used her star power to express political opinions in the past. Has she done it again?

Beyonce singing at President Obama's Inauguration

 Using their star power to challenge authority, or challenge oppressive government ?  Beyonce and Jay-Z visiting Havana in Communist Cuba on April 4, 2013.

April 4, 1968: The assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.

I've been vacationing in South Florida for the last few days. Yesterday, April 4, some family and I visited Little Havana in Miami. April 4th, if you don't remember, is a tragic day in our history. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated on April 4,1968. But as far as I could tell from looking at the news online and on the local TV news, Beyonce and Jay-Z's visit to HAVANA, Cuba, overshadowed any commemoration of MLK's death. 

MLK: Using his star power to question authority and challenge oppression ! 

As I watched the local news here outside of Miami, there was a person interviewed  from the Cuban Exile Community who voiced strong opposition to Beyonce and Jay Z's visit to the Communist country. Her reasoning was that Cuba under Castro was a nation that oppresses its people and deprives Cubans of their rights and liberties. She protested that the Castro's policies have left Cubans to endure extreme levels of grinding poverty and abuse of women. Indeed, the people I have spoken to, including my wife's 20-something cousin, who have been to Cuba are intrigued by the scope and breadth of the poverty. "There's nothing to buy. There are no stores to speak of, so you can't go buy touristy stuff. The people in the neighborhood we stayed at . . .  all got together each day to cook the food the government gave them." 

 It is common knowledge to anyone who has spent any time in any communist country that the people living in them do not enjoy freedoms that we do here in the USA. In their quest to achieve a workers' paradise where everyone is equal, Communist countries do not allow for ANYONE to criticize their quest for eutopia! Freedom of speech: television and radio are owned by the Cuban government. So, one will NEVER hear any criticism of the one party rule, or the Castros. If you dare, then you'll be taken away to jail, or worse.

What would Martin Luther King, Jr. think of such a repressive government? 

If he was alive, I think MLK would go to Communist Cuba today in order to point out these shortcomings; but would he go to celebrate his wedding anniversary and NOT VOICE criticism of the Human Rights abuses?  

No. MLK was a champion of Human Rights, and he fought against oppression.

1. Communism in Cuba is bad.

        evidence: continued repression of political dissent and continued violations of Human Rights

People who support, or who have directly or indirectly supported, the abuses of Communism: 

ON April 4, 2013, while Beyonce and JAY-Z were spending quality time with the REDS in Havana, Cuba, I was in Bay of Pigs Museum in LITTLE HAVANA in Miami. While there, I met with and spoke to a few veterans of the Bay of Pigs Operation who had fought against Castro and the evils of Communism: Time well spent. And remember, we vote with our feet. On April 4, my feet were alongside those who fought against COMMUNISM !