October 2012
Vigil for Alan Gross by Rabbi Arnold Saltzman
Alan Gross is a fine man, a dedicated husband and father, a professional, a man committed to assisting people around the world as part of his career. He has assisted people in Africa, the Middle East, the Persian Gulf and Asia.
For a minor infraction of the law, Cuba has declared him an enemy of the State. His action harmed no one! This is a man who was in B’nai B’rith Youth and went to local schools, and who has been involved in assisting the Jewish Community.
Dedicated to helping the Cuban Jewish Community, Alan has been caught in a Kafka-like nightmare. Arrested, and moved around in Cuba by sixteen special forces carrying machine guns, just for show, from the online photos anyone can see that Alan thinks this is bizarre and preposterous. He looks like he is saying ‘who are they protecting and from what?’
Cuba is not sympathetic to the Jewish Community. Only visits from American Jews have brought in assistance and some resources to these communities. It it is clear that the Jewish Community of Cuba is not as free as it would like us to believe. President Raul Castro visited a synagogue in Havana. What was his purpose? To say I am not prejudiced?
This transparent gesture comes from a country which does not recognize Israel, yet welcomes Ahmadinejad of Iran.
When Judy Gross recently visited Alan and returned saying that he is seriously ill, it was followed by a report that the head of the Havana Jewish Congregation immediately visited Alan again and found him perfectly happy and healthy!
You can make your own conclusions, but this does not speak of freedom?To me it implies that the visit was official, and required. Someone was pressured to say ‘we have to refute Judy Gross.’ Who do you believe?
Alan Gross is ill and by human standards around the globe he should be released for medical evaluation and treatment. He has spent enough time in jail and the horror of this ordeal has been compared to the historic Mendel Bailis and Gilad Shalit cases.
As we look around our world, there is much to be grateful for. The beauty of the land, the environment, the people. We are grateful for freedom, and reminded of the gifts of the Creator and creation. These testify to the greatness of the Creator, and remind us that no government has the right to remove our natural rights or to place itself above human rights!
What is justice without compassion and mercy? Is there no heart in the Law and the Government of Cuba? Surely they have a heart!
Let Alan Gross go now! Let him heal and return to his family. We urge the Cuban Government to begin a new relationship with the United States with the gesture of releasing this man. He does not deserve this cruel sentence, or to suffer alone in a prison hospital endlessly.
Alan is a good man. Free Alan Gross Now!