“"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”.
Quotes
"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".
I believe in the unity of all the countries in the world, in the unity of all the peoples in the world and in a free unity, a truly free unity. I am not thinking of a fusion but of a free unity of all cultures in a truly just world, in a truly democratic world.
“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”.
“Not only is knowledge a necessity for thinking and culture but it is also a revolutionary necessity that all peoples should know about the history of the world.”
“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”.
“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.”
The name of Cuba will go down in history for ever because of what it has done and is still doing for humanity in the fields of education, culture and health in the most difficult period that our species has known.
“Throughout the Battle of Ideas we have made an old dream come true: the universalization of higher education, thus making universities accessible to all the young people who graduate from the Revolution’s programs and to workers in general”.
“Throughout its lifetime, the Revolution has taught the people, training hundreds of thousands of teachers, doctors, scientists, intellectuals, artists, computer engineers and other professionals with university and post-graduate degrees in dozens of professions. This storehouse of wealth has allowed us to reduce infant mortality to low levels, unthinkable in any Third World country, and to raise life expectancy as well as the average educational level of the population up to the ninth grade.”