My experience in Cuba

[Judi Lynn]

Photo by Emanuel Haas

By Alex Garner Last updated Jan 22, 2020
By Alex Garner / From the Marquette Wire

I would like to begin this by stating that everything I speak about is from my own perspective and experience in Cuba. My opinions should not be taken as fact. I encourage you to visit Cuba to develop your own thoughts from what you see.

Over winter break, I had the opportunity to go on an International Marquette Action Program to Cuba through Campus Ministry. I.M.A.P. provides students the opportunity to put themselves in another society to deepen their understanding of values such as solidarity, justice and simplicity.

To say the least, it changed my life. I can say with confidence and certainty that I am not the same person I was before I left for Cuba. I am humbled by what I saw.

Before going to Cuba, I supported and advocated for the idea of community and unity and felt committed to promoting these ideas. I realize now that I lacked an actual grasp on what these ideas meant and had few experiences to articulate their importance.

While I was in Cuba, I witnessed love, community and solidarity in ways I had rarely seen outside of interactions with my family and friends in the United States. I frequently saw these elements of the country manifest in the Catholic churches and centers we visited. But I also saw them on the streets of Old Havana, Cienfuegos and Trinidad.

We not only observed the communities we were in, but we also engaged with them through speaking to vendors in markets and residents in neighborhoods. We were encouraged to speak and interact, but more importantly, to listen.

More:
https://progresoweekly.us/my-experience-in-cuba/