In an interview with NET-TV’s Currents news show, Cuban-born Brooklyn Auxiliary Bishop Octavio Cisneros said that the death of Fidel Castro “is not a time for vengeance, not a time for anger. But it is a time to see how we can shed some light on building up a country that has been destroyed by the ideology brought upon the island by these two men – the Castro brothers.
“His (Fidel’s) view of Communism, or Feudalism as we Cubans call it, his own view of how society should be led, has led to the destruction of a beautiful country.
“He has said that history will absolve him. I’m not so sure history will absolve him for the wrongs that were done in his life. We hope that with this page being turned, there will be a change in the country.
“What did Castro do? Divide families. I never saw my mother again after I left Cuba in 1961. I was able to see my father in 1988 but the families have been broken. I have a whole group of uncles, aunts and cousins that I have never known.
“Legacty usually has a very positive connotation but I cannot see a positive connotation that Mr. Castro left in Cuba. It’s not a legacy, it’s a destruction.
“Certainly we hope that there will be an opening to many of the freedoms that are not enjoyed by the Cuban people – religious freedom, freedom of speech, freedom of education.
“However, he has not been in charge for many years and we must realize that the same policies are being followed, even though Fidel, for all practical purposes was out of the picture.
“There have been some changes since Obama went there, but I consider them cosmetic. The real needs of the people have not been fulfilled.
“We should have hope for Cuba. The cross is a reality. We all have to go through the cross.”
