Should Marlins" Guillen Be Fired?
Should Marlins' Guillen Be Fired? The Windup
Before commenting on whether or not Marlins' Guillen ought to be fired, I would like to take a short walk through events leading up to this point in time.
In a March interview, the brand new Miami Marlins baseball manager told a Times reporter, "I love Fidel Castro" while describing his admiration for the longevity of the Cuban dictator, who ruled for over 50 years. According to Time, Marlins' Guillen made this remark in a kind of stream of consciousness oratory while also extolling the benefits of brutal honesty.
"A lot of people have wanted to kill Fidel Castro for the last 60 years, but that mother-- is still here."
Guillen's comments were released this week to the shock and outrage of many in Miami's Cuban American community where the Marlins organization recently opened their new ball park in the center of Little Havana. The irony of the situation can escape very few acquainted with Florida politics, as well as the desire of the Marlins management to bolster relations with the ex-patriot Cuban community that numbers near one million citizens in Miami.
A Spanish speaking Argentine-born American, Guillen was offered the position of manager late last season partly to boost the size of the Marlins' fan base and loyalty.
As part of his comments during the press conference, Guillen did not disown his published statements. In fact, it appears that he made very similar comments before he was recruited by the Marlins.
In a 2008 Men's Journal write-up when asked who he admired most, Guillen said, "Fidel Castro. He's a bulls- dictator and everybody's against him, and he still survives, has power. Still has a country behind him. Everywhere he goes they roll out the red carpet. I don't admire his philosophy. I admire him."
Since his Time magazine remarks became public, two Miami city managers have called on the Marlins' front office to replace him.
Attempting to defuse the situation and silence calls for an organized boycott of the team, it appears that the Marlins' management team may have swung and missed. As protesters gathered outside of the ballpark prior to the press conference, the team's ownership revealed that Guillen will be suspended at once without pay for the next Five games.
Hence the question still remains. Should Marlins' Guillen be fired?
Should - Marlins' Guillen - Be Fired? The Pitch
Before I get to the question of whether Marlins' Guillen should be fired, I need to let you know that although I am a life long MLB fan, I am not a Cuban American. I did not grow up in Miami, but come from the midwest. I've enjoyed the peace of middle class American life.
But 3 of my own children hadn't been so lucky. They were some of the first to emigrate from Romania during the summer of 1990 after the fall of communist dictator, Nicolae Ceausescu. Ceausescu's rule in Romania strangely paralleled that of Castro's in Cuba, both men ascending their own political party system and seizing power in the 1960s. Both grew wealthy on the backs of the citizens they terrorized, the land they took together with the crime they funded.
Relinquished at birth, my 3 kids survived in the unimaginable conditions of the Romanian orphanage gulag. Neglected, close to starvation, not able to express themselves or walk, they came to public notice when western film crews entered Romania shortly after Ceausescu was assassinated by pro-democracy patriots in 1990. Moving along the long rows of thousands of cribs, cameras captured their tiny emaciated faces with eyes that either overreacted to light or failed to respond at all.
The orphanages were part of Ceausescu's enforced population policy that denied contraception to parents. Countless impoverished parents, who previously had more children than they could feed, were forced to place their newborn babies in state supported orphanages rather than take them home.
As a result of the work of individuals like ABC's 20/20 producer Janice Tomlin, the story broke. Countless towns and cities across Romania all held one or more overcrowded. understaffed orphanage. The film footage shocked American viewers.
Academics and politicians who for many years had built careers extolling the benefits of a "make nice" foreign policy with dictators were abruptly silent. Evidence of Communist subsidized cruelty was plain to see on my small children's faces and that of thousands of others.
In the ensuing years, they have bravely overcome much of the emotional trauma and physical illnesses inflicted on them in infancy. But numerous long term effects remain and will never be erased.
Their trauma has become my trauma. And it has forever impacted my own life as a consequence; my entire life as a mother and a human being.
While writing this article, "Should Marlins' Guillen Be Fired?" I recognize how angry I am even after 20 years. My fingers pound the keys when I type. The passing of time has changed little in how I react to the name of the man who caused the suffering of thousands of innocent children, many of whom died.
Personally, the words "communism" and "dictator" will not be relegated to some history book. These evoke a profound emotional and intellectual response.
I can only suppose that those words have the same impact on Cuban Americans and all Americans who have found freedom and new life far from the stranglehold of the most terrible terrorists the world has ever witnessed.
Osama bin Laden? He is only a cheaper, crude counterfeit of the real deal.
Should - Marlins' Guillen - Be Fired? Strike Three
At this stage, it's unknown whether Guillen will keep hold of his position as Marlins' manager.
Equally unclear is the enthusiasm of Marlins' ownership to put up with themounting bonfire of unfavorable publicity. My guess is that the furor which Guillen's remarks have ignited will not die down in the near future.
Many fans will argue that sports figures, including MLB managers like Ozzie Guillen, have a right to voice their political opinions. I've no problem with that. Fortunately for them, living in a country established on the principle of freedom of expression, even absurdity is safeguarded under the law.
Even when they praise the very dictators who would deny such political protection to their citizens, whether they are sports figures or not.
Guillen might choose to compartmentalize the person from the philosophy. Individuals who encounter tyranny haven't any such luxury.
What is clear has to be that Guillen was chosen for very special PR and marketing reasons, above his on field work as manager. If a sufficient amount of Cuban Americans and other Miami Marlins' fans challenge his ability to carry out that job, my guess is he will no longer be the manager of the Miami Marlins once his Five week suspension is up. Stupidity has never been safeguarded in any professional contract.
Meanwhile, "Should Marlins' Guillen be fired?" is the question the club's front office has already decided.
Before commenting on whether or not Marlins' Guillen ought to be fired, I would like to take a short walk through events leading up to this point in time.
In a March interview, the brand new Miami Marlins baseball manager told a Times reporter, "I love Fidel Castro" while describing his admiration for the longevity of the Cuban dictator, who ruled for over 50 years. According to Time, Marlins' Guillen made this remark in a kind of stream of consciousness oratory while also extolling the benefits of brutal honesty.
"A lot of people have wanted to kill Fidel Castro for the last 60 years, but that mother-- is still here."
Guillen's comments were released this week to the shock and outrage of many in Miami's Cuban American community where the Marlins organization recently opened their new ball park in the center of Little Havana. The irony of the situation can escape very few acquainted with Florida politics, as well as the desire of the Marlins management to bolster relations with the ex-patriot Cuban community that numbers near one million citizens in Miami.
A Spanish speaking Argentine-born American, Guillen was offered the position of manager late last season partly to boost the size of the Marlins' fan base and loyalty.
As part of his comments during the press conference, Guillen did not disown his published statements. In fact, it appears that he made very similar comments before he was recruited by the Marlins.
In a 2008 Men's Journal write-up when asked who he admired most, Guillen said, "Fidel Castro. He's a bulls- dictator and everybody's against him, and he still survives, has power. Still has a country behind him. Everywhere he goes they roll out the red carpet. I don't admire his philosophy. I admire him."
Since his Time magazine remarks became public, two Miami city managers have called on the Marlins' front office to replace him.
Attempting to defuse the situation and silence calls for an organized boycott of the team, it appears that the Marlins' management team may have swung and missed. As protesters gathered outside of the ballpark prior to the press conference, the team's ownership revealed that Guillen will be suspended at once without pay for the next Five games.
Hence the question still remains. Should Marlins' Guillen be fired?
Should - Marlins' Guillen - Be Fired? The Pitch
Before I get to the question of whether Marlins' Guillen should be fired, I need to let you know that although I am a life long MLB fan, I am not a Cuban American. I did not grow up in Miami, but come from the midwest. I've enjoyed the peace of middle class American life.
But 3 of my own children hadn't been so lucky. They were some of the first to emigrate from Romania during the summer of 1990 after the fall of communist dictator, Nicolae Ceausescu. Ceausescu's rule in Romania strangely paralleled that of Castro's in Cuba, both men ascending their own political party system and seizing power in the 1960s. Both grew wealthy on the backs of the citizens they terrorized, the land they took together with the crime they funded.
Relinquished at birth, my 3 kids survived in the unimaginable conditions of the Romanian orphanage gulag. Neglected, close to starvation, not able to express themselves or walk, they came to public notice when western film crews entered Romania shortly after Ceausescu was assassinated by pro-democracy patriots in 1990. Moving along the long rows of thousands of cribs, cameras captured their tiny emaciated faces with eyes that either overreacted to light or failed to respond at all.
The orphanages were part of Ceausescu's enforced population policy that denied contraception to parents. Countless impoverished parents, who previously had more children than they could feed, were forced to place their newborn babies in state supported orphanages rather than take them home.
As a result of the work of individuals like ABC's 20/20 producer Janice Tomlin, the story broke. Countless towns and cities across Romania all held one or more overcrowded. understaffed orphanage. The film footage shocked American viewers.
Academics and politicians who for many years had built careers extolling the benefits of a "make nice" foreign policy with dictators were abruptly silent. Evidence of Communist subsidized cruelty was plain to see on my small children's faces and that of thousands of others.
In the ensuing years, they have bravely overcome much of the emotional trauma and physical illnesses inflicted on them in infancy. But numerous long term effects remain and will never be erased.
Their trauma has become my trauma. And it has forever impacted my own life as a consequence; my entire life as a mother and a human being.
While writing this article, "Should Marlins' Guillen Be Fired?" I recognize how angry I am even after 20 years. My fingers pound the keys when I type. The passing of time has changed little in how I react to the name of the man who caused the suffering of thousands of innocent children, many of whom died.
Personally, the words "communism" and "dictator" will not be relegated to some history book. These evoke a profound emotional and intellectual response.
I can only suppose that those words have the same impact on Cuban Americans and all Americans who have found freedom and new life far from the stranglehold of the most terrible terrorists the world has ever witnessed.
Osama bin Laden? He is only a cheaper, crude counterfeit of the real deal.
Should - Marlins' Guillen - Be Fired? Strike Three
At this stage, it's unknown whether Guillen will keep hold of his position as Marlins' manager.
Equally unclear is the enthusiasm of Marlins' ownership to put up with themounting bonfire of unfavorable publicity. My guess is that the furor which Guillen's remarks have ignited will not die down in the near future.
Many fans will argue that sports figures, including MLB managers like Ozzie Guillen, have a right to voice their political opinions. I've no problem with that. Fortunately for them, living in a country established on the principle of freedom of expression, even absurdity is safeguarded under the law.
Even when they praise the very dictators who would deny such political protection to their citizens, whether they are sports figures or not.
Guillen might choose to compartmentalize the person from the philosophy. Individuals who encounter tyranny haven't any such luxury.
What is clear has to be that Guillen was chosen for very special PR and marketing reasons, above his on field work as manager. If a sufficient amount of Cuban Americans and other Miami Marlins' fans challenge his ability to carry out that job, my guess is he will no longer be the manager of the Miami Marlins once his Five week suspension is up. Stupidity has never been safeguarded in any professional contract.
Meanwhile, "Should Marlins' Guillen be fired?" is the question the club's front office has already decided.
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