The Cuban Memorial

This past February the Mrs and I along with intrepid Babalu contributor and official photographer Julio Z visited the Cuban Memorial at Tamiami Park. You can read our coverage on it here, here, here, here and Julio’s excellent report is here. You can also read my personal experience at the Memorial here.

Today we learn, via the 26th Parallel, that the Cuban memorial now has a permanent home at the Tamiami Park Grounds. From the Miami Herald:

After years of searching, a group of Cuban exiles has gotten approval for a site to build a memorial honoring victims of Fidel Castro’s government.

By Yudy Pineiro
ypineiro@MiamiHerald.com

Cuban exiles raised crosses some years ago at Tamiami Park in Westchester as a symbolic gesture in honor of those who have died fighting Fidel Castro’s government — political prisoners, dissidents, and Bay of Pigs Invasion fighters.

The exiles honor Castro’s victims every year, and have sought to build a permanent memorial for a long time, but didn’t have the money, nor the place.

Then, last week, county officials announced Tamiami Park would house the memorial.

”For five years, we had this dream of honoring the victims of the Castro regime — and here we are,” said Renato Gomez, Cuban Memorial board member, fighting back tears.

From Willy Borroto, at February’s ceremony, regarding the Memorial design:

According to Mr. Borroto, the monolith of the Cuban flag will sit within a pool of water, representing the island of Cuba. The pool of water sits in the center of a star – the star of the Cuban flag. At each point in the star will stand a pillar with the names of those who died as a result of fidel castro’s regime and each pillar will have pieces of broken mirrors that represent the separation of Cubans from their homeland as well as the separation of Cubans from their families.

“You look into a broken mirror,” Mr. Borroto said, “and you see the whole of yourself in pieces.” The pieces may be separated, but the whole is still Cuban.

The monument will be protected by a circle of palmas Cubanas that symbolize not the past nor the future, but eternity.

Here’s the information should you wish to donate to the Cuban Memorial:

For your donation to the Cuban Memorial please send your check or money order Payable to:
MEMORIAL CUBANO
Address: 6600 S.W. 24 street
Miami, Fl 33155
Tel: (786) 621-7505
email: info@memorialcubano.org

6 thoughts on “The Cuban Memorial”

  1. I like the concept, it’s not a paja mental like a lot of proposed concepts for memorials are. It makes a lot of sense and I can see it beautiful and respectful at the same time.

  2. I hope this makes it on the tourist list a places to visit in Miami. Too few people know about castro’s victims, this is so important. I hope it’s completed by my next visit to Miami.

  3. nice to have this memorial, but what ever happened to cuban museo at the freedom tower. 50 years into exile history and hundreds in our immigration history and still no world class museum to tell our story.instead we have disinformation and a cultural lobotomy. we need this museum now so we can remain on historic par with america’s immigrant history.

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