Published Sunday, October 21, 2001

Little Havana march bolsters `U-S-A'

BY SARA OLKON

Tens of thousands of rain-soaked men, women and children came out Saturday afternoon for a ``God Bless America Solidarity March'' in Little Havana to show support for the war against terrorists -- including Cuban President Fidel Castro.

The march, sponsored by several Cuban exile organizations, stretched more than a mile down Calle Ocho, beginning at the Bay of Pigs Monument on 13th Avenue and finishing at Fourth Avenue.

Above a sea of oversized umbrellas and yellow rain slickers, the crowd proudly elevated Cuban and American flags, crucifixes and anti-terrorism placards.

The boos were still the loudest for Castro.

``He's been killing people for years,'' said Eugenio Pita, 66, a retired Miami electrician.

Julio Ramos, 54, a member of the exile group Agenda Cuba, handed out yellow fliers imploring the United Nations to conduct biological-weapon inspections on the island.

Many of the soggy placards declared that a war against terrorism was by its very nature also a battle against Castro. One read: ``America! Cuba is a safe haven for terrorists!''

``We want to stop terrorism worldwide,'' said Joaquín Mesa, 55, a Miami mechanic ducking the rain under a service station roof.

Mesa said he feels indebted to this country for taking him in and giving him freedom.

That sentiment was echoed by the crowd, many of whom chanted ``U-S-A'' and, in Spanish, ``Bush, friend, the people are with you.''

Students from the Lincoln-Martí Schools marched alongside former Cuban political prisoners. Filtering through the humid, wet air was the smell of Hebrew National hot dogs, arepas and cigarette smoke.

Despite the rain, the vendors did a brisk business.

Yoandi Darias, 17, said he sold hundreds of American flags as he skated through the crowd. Lázaro Dulcaides, 20, found 36 customers who wanted ``America Fights Back'' T-shirts.

Also on display: the bumper sticker ``9-11-01: We Will Never Forget,'' a blue teddy bear with a flag on its belly and a poster of the World Trade Center as it stood before the attacks.

Robert Morrea, 56, a Vietnam War veteran and electric company executive, said he came to show support to the men and women stationed at bases near Afghanistan.

``My prayers are with the fellow soldiers,'' said Morrea, wearing a camouflage cap. ``I'm sure it is very hard right now. But it is our duty. What they are doing is right.''

José Cao, 54, lost his leg and almost died in Vietnam. He said he still had refugee status when he went to fight.

Sitting in a wheelchair Saturday, he wore his Purple Heart pinned to a blue T-shirt emblazoned with the words ``United We Stand.''

``We have to fight them the way they fight us -- dirty,'' he said, referring to the al Qaeda terrorist network and its main supporter, the Taliban government of Afghanistan.

Speaking to the crowd was Armando Pérez-Roura, general director of Radio Mambi (WAQI 710 AM), who from a podium near Fourth Avenue thanked the crowd.

``We, Latin Americans all, have made the United States our second and loving home,'' he said in Spanish. ``And we, particularly exiled Cubans, left our country not because of personal decision but when confronted by the dark carriage of oppression and terror. . . . That is why we are here today.''

A fractured hip didn't stop Andrés García, 69, from showing up. Wearing a pale blue guayabera and an Oakland A's baseball cap, he laid down a plastic bag and sat for two hours on a concrete planter.

``It was marvelous,'' he said. ``There must have been a half-million people.''

Crowd estimates ranged wildly, the most common guesses were up to 150,000.

``There's a lot of people,'' said Miami Police Chief Raul Martinez, shying away from an estimate. ``Obviously, there are a lot of people who feel strongly about this and rain won't keep them away.'

Copyright 2001 the Miami Herald.
Republished here with the permission of the Miami Herald. No further republication or redistribution is  Herald