The Hamar House has recently worked to revamp their diverse lecture series. With the month of October falling in accordance with Hispanic Heritage month, they sought out an engaging speaker to increase student interest in multiculturalism. On Thursday, October 6, Alina Fernandez came to campus to share her personal account of growing up in the face of the Cuban revolution. Fernandez began with an anecdote leading up to her parent’s marriage. Fidel Castro, the only boy in a family of matriarchs, found himself butting heads with law enforcement in the midst of his protests against Fulgencio Batista, the previous leader of Cuba. During Castro’s time in prison, he wrote to Alina Fernandez’s mother and shortly thereafter fathered a child with her.
As a child, Fernandez recounts that Fidel Castro was an unfamiliar entity in her life. “When I was eight years old it became more apparent that the man entering the house in the early morning was my father. He was always off changing something, becoming an influence of his own,” she stated. Then all of a sudden, the stirring occurrences met their consequence. Fernandez said, “I remember sitting in my little chair on Saturday morning, watching cartoons. We were able to get American cartoons before the revolt began. All of a sudden, on that day in 1953, the television screen changed to an image of celebration. Men with beards were chanting “Cuba must be free!” After that, my childhood days of Mickey and Minnie turned into rations, campaigning, and the result of a Spanish run government.” Fernandez expressed some of the attributes that the Cuban government possessed during that time.
“The government conquered you in one of three ways. Politically, they took away your rights to small business. If you were homosexual, that was looked down upon and you were sent away. Psychologically, difference was a red flag. No one was allowed to stand outside their guidelines. I was just a teenager who could scream slogans, pass along letters and watch my peers march in uniforms,” Fernandez said.
Finally, in 1993, Fernandez fled the country under the identity of a fake passport to start a new life in the United States with her daughter. She shared her feelings toward home with the audience and the resolutions she hoped to see in the future. Fernandez said, “Cuba has always held a strong cultural influence in regard to the rest of the world. With peace should come Cuban autonomy.
These strained relations do not define our civilization.” The words of Fernandez resonated strongly in the hearts of the audience. “We want students to see that diversity doesn’t have to be boring.” said Zack Rubinstein, the program coordinator of Hamar House. Several other enlightening speakers will be making their way to Tech in the coming year, so be sure to keep a lookout for new events at https://events.mtu.edu/.
