This is going to be about a place that holds a special place in my
heart; a place that is more than what the public sees...or what the
press chooses to show. I'm talking about Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
I
hate how Gitmo is seen as some horrible, evil place that should be
torn down, destroyed, gotten rid of. I understand the general public's
perception of Gitmo is based on what the Press says. But really, come
on. Is there anyone still who believes what they hear from the Press
has ANYTHING to do with journalism or fair and balanced reporting?
See,
I've lived in Gitmo so I know how the Press is sensationalizing and
only telling about one tiny part of Gitmo. So let me tell you about
the Gitmo I know.
Gitmo is a tiny little city. It
generates its own power, purifies its own water, makes its own dairy
products (or it did when I lived there). When I lived there it had one
traffic light and the 'special' treat we had was a Baskin and
Robbins!! Gitmo is where I graduated from high school along with
another 31 students that year. Its where I learned to play the bassoon
which gave me the opportunity to play with the Guam Symphony later.
Gitmo is where I fell in love for the first time. My father received
his commission there. I will never forget the image of him there in
his officer's uniform. Gitmo is a training base for the Navy so our
sailors are better prepared to do their jobs on ship. Gitmo was barrel
boating with friends and swimming in the bay, huge Fourth of July
fireworks shows and out of date movies at outdoor theatres. It was a
sense of history, seeing it first hand. Gitmo is my Senior Prom...flu
and all. It is a smiley face flag flying at the Post Office on days
mail is flown in. Gitmo is a sense of community, of belonging to a
group of people who lived somewhere unique, who share an experience,
who's lives are forever linked. Gitmo is everyday people, living
everyday lives under the continual eye of a Communist dictator,
listening to Communist propaganda blare for hours on end from loud
speakers set in the side of the mountain. It is Cuban exiles living on
base and Jamaican beef pies. Gitmo is wonderful memories of fun times
and fascinating people.
There is more to Gitmo than
prisoners, detention camps and torture. In fact, those things are only
the tiniest part of what Gitmo is and has been for the last 40 years.
It doesn't deserve to be judged solely on one small slice of time in
its life anymore than we deserve to be solely judged on one incident in
our lives. Hopefully people can start to see the other side of Gitmo.
As someone who lived in Gitmo from 1977-80 (9-12 years of age) I loved this post! And I didn't even get to experience the Baskin Robbins since it opened after we left. A few years ago I had to reply to an article that talked about those words that needed to be banished because it included Gitmo in the list. I educated the writer of the article that Gitmo wasn't a new term but had been used for MANY years by residents of that great place and wasn't something created by the media when talking about the detention camps. The author replied that he had heard from many folks telling him the same thing.
ReplyDeleteIf you're not already familiar with it, you might want to check out and join the GTMO Facebook group for some fun recollections and pictures.
I'm glad you enjoyed the post. Writing it was a wonderful trip down memory lane. I was there not long after you...1981-82, my Senior year. And I am on the Facebook page. Keeping in touch with people from my Gitmo days is really the only reason I stay on FB. lol
ReplyDeleteI haven't been able to find too many folks from my days in Gitmo, although I did manage to reconnect with my neighbor in Center Bargo, which was nice. I just uploaded a few pics that I have from my time there. I'm going to have to ask my folks if they have any other pics so I could share them. Funny enough, I came across your blog when I was doing as search for "This is a Stop Light" and Gitmo. One of the souvenirs I had from their was a t-shirt that had that on it and I'd love to find it again.
ReplyDeleteI know a lot of people who were there when you were but they were in high school then so you probably didn't know them.
ReplyDeleteHey Becky, I'm someone else who appreciates you writing this. I was one of those sailors who trained there, right around 89-91. I was in a program called TAR for Training and Administration of Reservists. I think the program is gone. I know my ship, the U.S.S. Miller is.
ReplyDeleteOne thing I've thought of many times in the years since, is that little red hanging 4-way flashing light with the sign attached to it that read, "Stop Light". I remember the NCO club, the hospital, the little mall, the pier, etc.
I'm a journalist now, so I'm glad to see someone writing about the place. Thank you!
Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it. Hope you weren't offended by my thoughts on the press. lol I wish everyone could spend time in the Gitmo we know and see it for the wonderfully unique place it is. Maybe some journalist who lived there could write an article that would get a wider audience. ;)
Delete