Fidel Castro a guest of the Harlem Community

By Thami Madinane <madinane@newschool.edu>, 23 October 1995

Peter,

Just last night (Sunday , October 22) Fidel Castro was a guest of the Harlem community, the same community which warmly embraced him 35 years ago, his speech at the Abyssinian Church of Rev. Butts was powerful and well received and he reinterated very similar themes as contained in Mandela's speech. As also a supporter of the Cuban revolution I believe that South Africans can learn a lot from that small nation; that in the final analysis freedom is not all about consumerism and pursuit of ephemeral notions of capitalist ideas; but more working class and mass based social development strategies. Of course, such ideas will take time to root themselves in the present sub-culture of the universities in South Africa which to some extent are still dominated by liberals and anti-people elites. However, I must admit the undercurrents.

Thami

New School for Social Research
Department of Economics
New York.