President Raul Castro hosts state dinner for the Obamas

Posted on March 21, 2016 by SouthernGirl2

About SouthernGirl2

A Native Texan who adores baby kittens, loves horses, rodeos, pomegranates, & collect Eagles. Enjoys politics, games shows, & dancing to all types of music. Loves discussing and learning about different cultures. A Phi Theta Kappa lifetime member with a passion for Social & Civil Justice.
This entry was posted in Barack Obama, Current Events, First Daughters, First Lady Michelle Obama, FLOTUS, Foreign policy, History, Malia Obama, News, Open Thread, Photos, POTUS, President Obama, Relationships, Sasha Obama, State Dinner and tagged , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

15 Responses to President Raul Castro hosts state dinner for the Obamas

  8. rikyrah says:
    March 22, 2016 at 11:40 am

    That’s my President.

    THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 3/21/16

    Obama gets Cuba deal done where past presidents have failed

    Rachel Maddow tells the remarkable story of the secret effort to change the relationship between the U.S. and Cuba during the Kennedy administration and notes that President Obama succeeded in his historic visit to Cuba today where every Democratic president since has failed. Duration: 19:39

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  9. rikyrah says:
    March 22, 2016 at 8:20 am

    Monday, March 21, 2016
    “A Different American President”
    As the Obama family continues their historic visit to Cuba, Jeffrey Goldberg relates a story from national security advisor Ben Rhodes that might have provided the moment that made the opening between our two countries possible.
    “The president was going to the funeral of Nelson Mandela—his personal hero—and I remember on the plane to South Africa I raised with him—we had a list of the leaders who were going to be up on the dais where he’d be speaking—and one was Raul Castro, and I said, ‘Look, inevitably it is going to come up as to whether or not you shake his hand.’”

    Obama’s response was not necessarily the response of a typical American president. According to Rhodes, Obama said, “‘Look, the Cubans, given their history with Mandela, with the ANC, they have a place at this event, and I’m not going to, essentially, cause an uncomfortable situation for the Mandela family, for the South African people, by snubbing the president of Cuba who has a right to be on that dais.’” The Cubans were early and ardent supporters of Mandela’s African National Congress party, and were also deeply engaged militarily across southern Africa…
    Castro, Rhodes said, was a bit surprised, and perhaps somewhat moved. “What was interesting was, in our subsequent meetings with the Cubans, the atmosphere changed a bit, and the first thing they said to me in the next meeting was how much President Castro appreciated that President Obama had done that, and it kind of established a tone where they understood they were dealing with a different American president—one who is willing to leave the history in the past and actually try to get something done.”

    http://immasmartypants.blogspot.com/2016/03/a-different-american-president.html?spref=tw

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  13. rikyrah says:
    March 22, 2016 at 8:11 am

    thanks once again for these wonderful galleries SG2

    Reply
  14. eliihass says:
    March 21, 2016 at 10:09 pm

    FLOTUS was originally supposed to visit a high school as I recall from earlier talks about this trip…It looks like the Cuban government controlled much of where they had access to and who they could meet with…so in the end, most of the afro-Cubans were shut out from this historic visit…what else is new…I don’t know why or how this happened, but more importantly, according to this article, afro-Cuban students were also mostly missing from FLOTUS’ event – which was apparently not shown, but blacked-out too…these black girls were who needed to hear her more than ever…And apparently, just as I imagined, FLOTUS has a very special place in hearts of the afro-Cuban women…

    Read on…

    “…HAVANA, Cuba—President Barack Obama’s historic to Cuba this week has had all the trappings of a typical guy’s weekend: Two men putting aside past differences to make nice on politics, talk optimistically about business, and then watch a little baseball.

    For many Cubans the fact that Obama brought his whole family to their island is a very important gesture that underscores the strong blood ties that have long existed between the two nations.

    And the fact that the first family is African American seems to be an added source of pride and inspiration for many black Cubans.

    “Since the days of Spanish rule, it’s been the white race that’s been in power and making decisions here. I’ve never seen someone my color in government,” says Daylí, a 24-year-old waitress in Havana.

    Mrs. Obama, in particular, represents a woman of strong family values and individual empowerment. She plays the roles of wife, mom and role model—and Cubans seem to appreciate that solid multitasking performance.

    “We are very happy that Obama and Michelle are visiting with their kids, who are lovely,” says Marilin Montez, who stopped to talk to me as she walked through downtown Havana with her daughter, Odesa Maria de los Santos. “The fact that the U.S. has a black first lady sets an example for the whole world.”

    The Obama family’s visit to Cuba is a moment of both inspiration and hope.

    “I hope the first lady and president Obama help bring lots of changes, all the changes that we have needed here for a long time,” Beatriz, a 23-year-old Havana resident told me as she passed by the Parque de la Fraturnidad. “I would love to see the first lady, but I can’t—not even on TV, because we don’t have a TV in my house.”

    Beatriz might have been disappointed with Cuban TV had she a set to watch. Local programming this week didn’t give much air time to the first lady’s visit, but did loop President Obama’s lengthy meeting with Raul Castro on Monday, in addition to other timeless revolutionary programming.

    While Mrs. Obama remained mostly out of the camera’s reach, she did hold a more intimate gathering on Monday with a group of 10 Cuban school girls to discuss matters of race and education.

    It was a heartfelt message, and one that might have resonated even louder with the black women gathered outside waiting to catch a glimpse of the first lady.

    “I am very happy because she is African American. She is our color and she has done something that nobody else has ever done,” said Yurdeki, a black woman who waited in the street outside the the Cuban Art Factory. “I am here because I want to see her and her daughters, because they are all beautiful.”

    “Despite the past relations between our two countries, she is here with her whole family. As a woman, I feel like this is a step forward and she feels identified with Cuban women,” added Elise Augusto, who also waited outside Mrs. Obama’s talk this morning. “Her visit here is very significant.”

    Others see the the first black U.S. presidency as a team effort.

    “I think that behind every strong man is a great woman,” says Elizabeth, a 28-year-old waitress. “I know she has had a part to play in improving relations with Cuba. She has contributed her opinions and ideas, because men always ask their wife about big decisions.”

    In the end, two is better than one…”

    http://fusion.net/story/283239/cuba-women-michelle-obama/?utm_campaign=ThisIsFusion&utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=social

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