His name is Elian Gonzalez. To many, his is a household name. To others, images of him running around in a fenced-in yard with a Labrador puppy are played in daily packages on the morning, afternoon and evening news.
Unfortunately, there are also those few, supposedly elite, individuals who consider Elian a most powerful political football. For Vice President Al Gore, Elian is a campaign tool and a means to several ends. Gore has used the Elian custody battle to posture himself against the Clinton Administration. He has also used Elian as an electoral strategy to court the support of a specific and crucial demographic in Florida--the Cuban-American population. For Gore, Florida is arguably one of the most crucial big states to win in the upcoming general presidential election.
Gore's opponent, George W. Bush, who thinks Elian should be granted American citizenship, has an advantage in The Sunshine State where his brother is governor. Al Gore's position is for legislating to grant Elian permanent residency in the U.S. and to keep him here with his Miami relatives rather than sending him back Cuba. This stance is consistent with Gore's anti-Communist record, and perhaps the Cuban-American electorate in Miami agrees with Gore's Elian politics. Still, the reality is that this group of people remains staunchly Republican and it is doubtful Gore's stance on the Elian issue will change their vote.
There are myriad problems stemming from the Elian case. For example, why is Elian creating such a complicated immigration battle when U.S. immigration laws would have sent this refugee boy back to Cuba as quickly as he arrived in Florida? Why is he an exception to these laws? Why is there a question about granting custody to his father when U.S. family laws stress granting custody to capable biological parents? Why has it taken more than 130 days to return the boy to his father?
Elian is not just a household name. He is not just a cute little boy on the news. He is not just a political football. He is a 6-year-old boy. He is a motherless child whose father wants nothing more than to be reunited with him, to take care of and raise him because Elian is his son.
No political ideology can deny this reality. No rhetoric from any governmental official or candidate can deny the fact that this boy needs nothing more in his life right now than a loving father.
In this country, there is frequent discussion of the breakdown in the American family. Parents are encouraged to take active roles in the lives of their children, and it is stressed that nothing is more important to a child during his/her formative years than a loving, nurturing family environment. There are many children in this country who do not enjoy the support and comfort of even one loving parent, let alone two. And here is a case of a 6-year-old boy who, regardless of circumstance, has a father who loves him and wants to raise him. There is no history or evidence to suggest that his father has ever done him any harm and still, the decision-makers in this country are grappling over what is in the best interest of Elian Gonzalez. Isn't it obvious?
Perhaps he may be happy in Miami with his great-uncle and other relatives. Perhaps he likes playing with his new puppy. What child doesn't like puppies? Perhaps he enjoyed visiting Disney World. Who wouldn't enjoy a free afternoon with Mickey at the Magic Kingdom? And perhaps he even enjoyed playing with Diane Sawyer for several hours. Though, that couldn't possibly have been exciting for a six-year-old boy. There is no question, the United States is the land of opportunity and he has enjoyed a taste of freedom in our democratic society far different from the life he lives in Cuba. But his childhood is void of one fundamentally important person -- his father.
Cuban-Americans in Miami are on 24-hour vigil at Elian's great-uncle's home. They are ready at any instant to form human chains with the hopes of keeping immigration officials from removing the boy. Meanwhile, his father, no doubt under the pressures and restrictions of Fidel Castro's communist hand in Cuba, anxiously awaits being reunited with his son. One can only hope that when the passions of the Cuban community settle and Elian's father does touch the ground in Miami to be with his son the reunion will be peaceful and it will be clear that what has transpired is in the best interest of Elian Gonzalez.