If not me, then my children

But fidelito, your end will come and the truth will be known!

American-born college students keep flames of Cuban protest burning

By Madeline Baró Diaz
Miami Bureau

June 28, 2006

Candice Balmori has never been to Cuba, but when the Davie resident is not attending classes or taking exams, she's working to bring change to the island.

At Harvard University, where Balmori is a senior, she and fellow activists once erected a life-size jail cell and hung a Cuban flag inside to let the campus know about the arrests of dozens of dissidents in Cuba. They have also held candlelight vigils, screened movies and discussed Cuba with visiting dignitaries, all in an effort to bring attention to the island's totalitarian system.

Balmori is part of the new generation of Cuban-American activists who are finding their own way to support Cuba's internal opposition. By doing so, they are steering away from the traditional issues of the older generation, such as the U.S. embargo of the island.

"I think every college kid has to have a cause," said Balmori, 21, president of Harvard's Cuban American Undergraduate Student Association, or CAUSA. "Everyone has to take up a banner of some sort." [Read more]