Oímos de hijas
We hear of daughters

Por diez años
Oímos de hijas
quince años han pasado
sin vera sus padres.

For ten years now,
We hear of daughters,
whose 15th birthday passed,
without beloved fathers.

Their hurts and heartaches
have become our pain.
Their tears tear our hearts.
Again and again.

LR 2007.09.11 Havana

Venceramos!


The ancient Spanish tradition of The Quinceañera
is the major rite of passage for teenage girls growing up in Latin American culture.
It is the day they are welcomed into womanhood.
The celebration is highlighted with family, friends, music, food, and dance,
but most importantly, their fathers.

While in Cuba we heard from the eldest of three daughters
who told us that she and her two sisters
had not been able to celebrate with their father Ramon,
unjustly imprisoned in the USA,
one of the Five Cuban Heroes.