The communist Castro dictatorship may have taken 16 years of her life in a gulag, but they were never able to take her dignity. The indomitable Cary Roque was an inspiration for the Cuban exile community and all women. She passed away in Miami on Wednesday at the age of 82, but she leaves behind an incredible legacy of valor and perseverance that we would all do well to follow.
Journalist and former Cuban political prisoner Cary Roque dies in Miami
Cuban journalist and former political prisoner Cary Roque passed away this Wednesday in Miami at the age of 82. The news was confirmed by Cuban activists and media outlets such as Martí Noticias and América TeVé.
“With deep sadness, we received the terrible news of the passing of a great patriot, journalist, and political prisoner who stood bravely against the Castro tyranny. May your immaculate life story serve as a reference for many of us who raise the flag for the cause of freedom in Cuba as the most sacred and honorable duty,” wrote Facebook user Mike Norton Cordero.
Also on Facebook, Calex Goriv described Roque as “a WARRIOR in capital letters” and “an example of conviction, determination, and principles” who “gave her life for a land that (…) she departs this world without seeing it free as she dreamed, fought, and yearned for.”
“Those of your lineage never rest because they are the eternal example and guide for the struggle and the right to not give up,” Goriv added.
Meanwhile, journalist and activist Yoaxis Marcheco Suárez pointed out: “It is a sad day. A woman with all the courage that word represents has left us. A life dedicated to the freedom of the homeland. It saddens me that she could not see a free Cuba.”
Caridad Roque Pérez was born in Havana in 1941. She studied Journalism at the “Márquez Sterling” National School and worked as a broadcaster and actress for the CMQ Radio station.
After the triumph of the Cuban Revolution, she began to oppose the regime led by Fidel Castro and joined the Revolutionary Rescue Movement (MRR), among other dissident groups.
In 1961 at just 19 years of age, she was arrested and subjected to interrogations for her work against the regime. She was tried on September 22 of that year and sentenced to two decades in a political prisoner for the alleged crime of “terrorism.”
After 16 years in prison, and thanks to an agreement between U.S. President Jimmy Carter and dictator Fidel Castro, she was released. On May 20, 1977, she traveled to Spain and later to the United States, where she lived until her death.
In Miami, she became a tireless advocate for the restoration of democracy in Cuba. She traveled to multiple international forums, where she condemned the Fidel Castro regime.
Simultaneously, she carried out intensive journalistic work, both on the radio and television. Additionally, she was a regular collaborator with Martí Noticias, a media outlet that described her as “a familiar, awaited, and respected voice in the troubled Cuban households on the island.”
And of course, the usual suspects totally ignored her as just another one of “those people.” May she RIP.