Cuba is right in demanding compensation. The embargo was carried out ‘to bring about hunger, desperation and the overthrow of the Cuban government.’ And this is a direct quote from the State Department.
“Trading with the Enemy”? Artist Duke Riley spent over four years breeding and homing 50 pigeons in Key West so they could make the 90-mile flight from Havana back to Key West carrying Cuban Cohiba cigars, which are banned in the United States. As Secretary of State John Kerry prepares to reopen the U.S. embassy in Havana this Friday, we speak with Riley about his project to challenge the Cuban embargo on Democracy Now! today.
This story began when the U.S. succeeded in isolating Cuba from the rest of the hemisphere, and now the first chapter has ended with the U.S. ending its own isolation.
As the United States moves to normalize relations with Cuba, more than a million Americans are expected to visit the island this year. Tune in to Democracy Now! for a special report from Havana on the country’s growing private tourism industry.