The Lost Son of Havana.

[[{“type”:”media”,”view_mode”:”media_large”,”fid”:null,”attributes”:{“class”:”media-image”,”typeof”:”foaf:Image”,”style”:””,”alt”:”tiant2.gif”}}]]Last night at a standing room only ESPN Deportes premier, the Miami ad and media industry enjoyed a documentary about the life of one of the best Cuban pitchers in the  professional baseball Luis Tiant.

Among the baseball celebrities present El Duque and others, the crowd was preparing itself for a magical voyage to see for themselves what life in in Cuba was like for themselves for the average person.

A direct comparison of the life of an immigrant to the USA, between his American reality and what could have been if he stayed in Cuba.  Worlds apart, but only 90 miles away from America’s shores.

The media room downstairs at the Miami Art Center was dark, intense, and the warm air in the room was battered by whispers from every corner about the story line, the images and the people in the documentary.

An image of Fidel Castro appear on the screen, the whispers were broken by familiar words among Cuban Americans at mid volume “Hijo de Puta’.  Everyone in the room understood that comment.

I am not Cuban, but my life has evolved with a cultural mix of Argentine ancestry with my father having to leave Argentina due to his political differences with Peron, the Cuban immigrants to Puerto Rico in 60’s and 70’s, my close ties to many of our Cuban advertising and media professionals in our Industry and their struggles in America, laced with my American heritage that does not accept social tyranny.

I understand their pain, their hopes and desires for a Free Cuba.

ESPN Deportes will be airing the documentary in the programming schedule shortly.  To get a glimpse of the documentary CLICK HERE.