"Without culture, freedom is not possible. The accuracy of this claim is what inspires our efforts today. And for us, culture is not limited to artistic pursuits, but rather, it encompasses a concept of comprehensive general culture that includes professional training and basic knowledge of a wide range of disciplines in the sciences, arts and humanities".
"The National Ballet of Cuba has been present in the greatest moments of our major cultural endeavors, throughout the long battle for independence and socialism waged by our people".
"Alicia’s excellence, her talent, tenacity and example, have inspired generations of brilliant artists, and made possible the miracle: the existence of the National Ballet of Cuba, with its world-class quality and worldwide prestige; the birth of the Cuban School of Ballet, a synthesis of universality, tradition, Cubanness and a style uniquely its own, recognized and acclaimed around the globe; the training of new and extraordinary talents; and the possibility of realizing other ambitious dreams".
“To begin with, I will say that neither in the first or the second half of this century nor at any other time in history has a country done or achieved as much in sports as Cuba in an extremely short period of time. And it is a small Third World country, one that is additionally subjected to an economic blockade by the wealthiest and mightiest nation on Earth as well as to a thousand different forms of harassment and aggression”.
“Nobody could be so naive as to think that this noble and self-sacrificing people would renounce glory and their rights, and the spiritual richness they have earned with the development of education, science and culture”.
“"Their society" of privileged minorities over exploited majorities, "their class order" which they maintain with blood and fire over the dispossessed, "the homeland" which they alone enjoy, depriving the rest of the people of that enjoyment, to repress the revolutionaries who aspire to a new society, a just order, a true homeland for all”.
"Venezuela has the potential to become a model of socialist development with the resources formerly extracted by the multinationals from its rich nature and the efforts of it manual and intellectual workers. No foreign power shall determine its future. The people are the masters of their destiny and they march on to attain the highest levels of education, culture, health and full employment."
“We Caribbean countries face the challenge of surviving and advancing in the midst of the most profound economic, social and political crisis ever sustained by our hemisphere and the world, as neoliberal globalization threatens to destroy not only our right to development, but also our cultural diversity and national identities. It is only through integration and cooperation, not only among states but also among the various regional organizations and entities, that our peoples can find a way out of this predicament”.
"Venezuela, given its extraordinary educational, cultural and social developments, and its vast energy and natural resources, is called on to become a revolutionary model for the world".
“It seems to me that one of the best things that is being done in our country is the revolution we are carrying out in education, which includes a general comprehensive education, that includes not just the professional knowledge a person must possess but the minimum of cultural knowledge in order to possess an artistic culture, a general culture and a political culture.”