‘One step at a time’
From
Havana Read Spanish Version
‘One
step at a time’
By
Manuel Alberto Ramy
"They’re
neither clowns nor people to be despised. They are people like us,
but different in terms of their sexual choice," said Alex
Caraiba, a 20-year-old university student, in one of the corridors of
the Cuba Pavilion, in the heart of Havana’s La Rampa. The large
building was the site of the Cuban Day Against Homophobia.
"I
am a heterosexual, but I’m against discrimination. I support them,"
Alex added.
"I
am here to support them," said Yadira, a young woman. As she
walked toward the central hall, she added: "I like men, but I
have lesbian friends and they shouldn’t have to hide."
To
come out of the closet and be accepted is a long and slow road, not
without problems for homosexuals, lesbians, transsexuals and
bisexuals. For the past several years, they have the support of the
National Center for Sexual Education (Cenesex), directed by Mariela
Castro Espín.
The
topic is serious and discrepancies abound.
"Who
ever heard of f**s and d***s becoming couples?" exclaimed Julio
(42, a postal worker), while standing outside the Pavilion.
Like
Julio, others expressed harsh and contemptuous feelings. Others said
they don’t want their children’s or grandchildren’s teachers to be
homosexual or lesbian.
Cuba’s
machista
society
(more machista
in some
regions than in others) is undergoing noticeable and appreciable
changes regarding sexual preference, especially among the young
people. Others, particularly the older people, don’t think like that.
That
is why the stress at this event was to disseminate information.
Mariela
Castro Espín knows the ground she treads. Her words at the
main event demonstrate that. "You know that we are making
efforts that are not only educational but also at the level of
legislation. We are going one step at a time. We are working very
carefully, because the things we like the most are worked out
carefully and with much attention."
While
she has achieved a greater degree of tolerance toward the different
manifestations of sexuality, she senses that the topic is complex and
has many facets, such as the legal aspect she mentions.
Cuba’s
Parliament is revising the Family Code and, while the hope of Cenesex
and the attendees is to secure homosexual marriage rights, reality
tends to limit that objective.
Important
segments of the population would not be in agreement, religious
institutions that, by various means, have manifested their objection
to considering the marriages of homosexuals equal to the marriages of
heterosexuals. The Cuban Catholic Church has been very clear about
that. Why run headlong into these institutions? Why challenge the
people’s adverse opinions, which might be in the majority?
The
president of the National Assembly, Ricardo Alarcón de
Quesada, who attended the main event, was very prudent in his
statements to the media.
This
day "is commemorated throughout the world and seeks to promote
understanding and education among human beings. It seems to me that
that’s a needful activity," he said.
To
understand and educate are the equivalent of tolerating, refraining
from alienating, not repressing — as happened in past decades — and
accepting what’s different. But from there to matrimony there’s a big
distance.
At
the event, acceptance turned emotional when a lady who identified
herself as a religious woman called on the attendees to do what her
parishioners do during the religious service. "Let us all
embrace each other." They did — some of them with tears in
their eyes.
While
describing some of the things that happened in the Cuba Pavilion, I
pause to give you my opinion.
Will
marriage be permitted? For the time being, I don’t think so. I
believe the solution will be to give homosexual couples the same
legal rights enjoyed by couples in a consensual heterosexual
marriage, which are plenty. As for the rest, the future will tell.
