‘Choir of Silence’

This afternoon in San Juan of Puerto Rico -as it could not be any other way – it is very, very hot… Roberto Rodríguez Díaz and I meet in one of the cafes of Old San Juan that he tends to frequent every day with the same discipline and consistency that intellectuals and artists have for these spaces that are, in reality, a work place to talk, where discussions take place, and projects are born and developed.

The reason for the meeting is his film-documentary ‘Choir of Silence’, of which he is Director and Executive Producer, and made him the first Cuban exile Director to participate in a film festival in Cuba, the “Festival of the New Latin American Cinema of Havana” 2013.

Yet the script of this film began to be written many years ago, more precisely, in 1961, when Robert, merely an 11-year-old boy, was sent by his parents to the United States as part of Operation Pedro Pan.

Your film-the documentary Choir of Silence- didn’t only you make you the first Cuban exile to participate in a film festival in Cuba, but also was also exhibited at the Havana Film Festival New York (April 2014) and the Film Festival San Juan Puerto Rico (2013). Can you talk about those experiences and how did you live each?

Coincidentally I have lived in these three places, but of course, exhibiting the film in Cuba was the most important to me, because it is my country and where the history of the film starts, although it was also a great pleasure to show it in New York and here in Puerto Rico because I lived 13 years in the “Big Apple” and have spent the same amount of years in Puerto Rico.

Did you notice different audience reactions to the film in each of these cities?

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No, in every place where it was exhibited the reaction was the same, well, maybe in Havana was something different because everyone already knew the history of documentary, while in San Juan and New York many viewers confessed to see after watching it, that they had no idea of the dark and negative aspects of Operation Pedro Pan.

It is my understanding you had the collaboration of Yoesvel Llerena Suri, a Cuban living in Hungary. How did you meet and what was his collaboration?

When I started preparing the documentary I mentioned it to a friend and he told me he knew a Cuban residing in Hungary with lots of experience in films and that he was sure would be interested in my project, and as my greatest desire was to have as many Cubans as possible in the project, I contacted him and he did not hesitate to join me. And really Yoesvel was an invaluable help. We work all over the Internet, he from Budapest and from the different places where the shooting was taking place.

I also find it very important to mention the Cuban singer Richard D’Cabrera because he was the one who composed the soundtrack Salva Vida. When he came to Puerto Rico, he had read my book, and when I heard that part of the lyrics that goes: As a bird of passage I get back to you traveling in time, I knew immediately that this was the right song. For two weeks we continued to work together until finally we recorded it at a local studio.

And at this point I have to mention also my acknowledgement to the artist Michel Mirabal who gave me his painting Identidad to make it the book cover and poster for the documentary.

Originally you wrote the book called Choir of Silence, how and why comes the idea of turning it into a documentary?

I originally traveled to Cuba for the sole purpose of seeing my country, visit the house where I was born, to revisit the school, walking the streets of my childhood, and all the emotions and feelings of that trip led me to feel and have the conviction that I should write the story of my experiences and that of other children who participated in the Pedro Pan program. The book was born out of the shudder, of seeing again, of stepping on the land of my birth. Travelling from Havana to Santiago de Cuba, visiting El Cobre, seeing again neighbors, making new friends … I went back to Miami with the history of the entire book in my head and when it finally came off the press, those who read me started to say I should do a movie.

Can you tell us about your particular experience and that of other children of Pedro Pan program you had to live with and who you made contact afterwards?

At first no one wanted to talk, because of different traumatic experiences they had suffered, so I decided to take the first step and tell my story. Then the book came out and later the film, other “Peter Pan” has been encouraged to talk. Now more people are beginning to tell their stories that in many cases were even worse than mine.

The worst of all is to think that there was no need to go to orphanages, reformatories or fall into homes of people who abused us in many ways. The people should be aware that there was mental, sexual and physical abuse, and the same priests told us that if we spoke they would send back to Cuba and our families would be ashamed. I understand that was the biggest problem of Operation Pedro Pan, and while it is true that not all priests behaved that way, most did.

You understand that the United States led Cuban families to believe that if they were to stay in the country state would take away their children?

Somebody printed a false law that was passing on surreptitiously, secretly, from one family to another (which gave it a greater chance of actually), that false law said that the government would take away parental rights, and when that piece of news was spread, many parents, like mine, decided to send their children to the United States.

After seeing a documentary I had the impression that Cuban families ended up delivering their children to pedophile priests and / or unscrupulous people. Of course it was not in all cases, but who you know are the main culprits that so many children were sent away from their families?

They were members of the American government who made us believe this talk of parental rights, with the complicity of the church, and exacerbated the fear (now we know how unfounded) of families.

The church showed a false gentle face pretending she was reacting at the request of Cuban families, when what really happened is that the American government had mounted a huge advertising campaign in its favor, and did not care that for its political purposes, families were broken and thousands of children suffered so much. I completely blame the church, because what it did was aberrant and those who played the part were the Archdiocese of Havana and Miami.

Furthermore, and in order to understand the dimensions of what happened, we must not forget that it was the largest exodus of unaccompanied minors in history, 14,048 children left Cuba (the previous was the ‘Kindertransport’ in Nazi Germany and it involved 10,000 Jewish children).

To what extent the terrible experiences you went through as a “Peter Pan” child have determined, in one way or another, the rest of your life?

I went through four stages, first i was sent to a camp in Florida City, then to a foster home in Pompano Beach (FL), another camp in Opa Locka (FL) and finally to a reformatory in Victoria (Texas).

I think what saved me from all that hell was my having of some natural maturity, and that I sought refuge in music and film (two passions that I still have), it helped me to avoid me about what happened. Yes, that’s what saved me …, others unfortunately did not succeed, as several children committed suicide, others tried, and many went crazy.

As a result of these experiences, for years I lost almost completely the ability to focus and that affected my studies, partly because of the amount of electric shocks I received and the drugs they gave us to keep us appeased. I was drugged four times a day. That was the only way to keep us controlled. I tried to escape once and the punishment was so terrible that I never tried again.

My stay with the family of Pompano Beach was the result of this family contributing with a lot of money to the church, and they simply requested me to the Catholic Charities in the Florida City Camp, and just like that, I was sent to them. The process was very simple, you go to church and ask for a Cuban child as someone asks for bread … Nobody found out nothing of these people, their history and we became slaves because we went to work for them and this happened in the 35 states where Cuban children were sent.

But the worst for me was in the camp of Opa Locka, Florida, there I was raped by the principal of this operation and when I tried to report it, I was sent to reformatory school in Texas and with the threat that if I did it, they would never let my family leave Cuba.

Do you feel that in your film you left something out?

A documentary has certain limitations because in an hour you cannot tell everything, so the project that I have now is to make a film that will be done entirely in Cuba and with Cuban actors. I am also working on a second film project based on something I saw on my trips to Cuba, met so many couples who have been for many years together and never for a moment thought of leaving and I was really surprised to see those households that transmit a lot more unity and happiness of what one sees in families of exiles.

I want to highlight the positive aspects of what happens in Cuba.

It’s like when you talk about the destruction of Havana, yes of course, there are parts that are not right, but nobody mentions all that has been rebuilt or new. Besides, isn’t there areas in American cities that are been destroyed?

Want to talk about Detroit? Or about the slums of Miami, or more impoverished areas in San Juan de Puerto Rico?

Why nobody talks about how the Malecon in Havana uses solar energy for its lighting?

The Miami media focus on the negative. I want to focus on the positive in my country.

The first day I went up to you to ask you for the interview, we talked briefly and you told me a family story that caught my attention and I understand it is important to tell the readers…

Yes, for years my father said about the Prado lions in Havana that they had been sold to Europe and the trees of the same promenade had been cut to make wood furniture.

And when I returned to Cuba for the first time, one of the first things I did was go to the Paseo del Prado and to my surprise the lions were still there and the trees still provided shade…

It was Joseph Goebbels, Hitler’s propaganda minister, who said that of you repeat a lie many time it becomes reality and that is what ​​the media in the United States and Miami in particular, did.

Are you in favor of the repeal of the embargo?

I would like them to remove the embargo, because the only loser is the people.

You lived in New York, Miami and for the last 13 years are in Puerto Rico and after five trips to Cuba you are about to move permanently to your country. Can you talk about those experiences and why did you decide to return?

Each time I travel to Cuba is like a new stepto move there, I find that there is more to life, more humanity than that which exists in Miami or here; not all is, can or should be money, nor can you call life to be buying things you do not really need and which only serve to cover or hide the emptiness and existential misery that the model of American life provides, a lifestyle leading to a permanent “shopping”, senseless and endless spiral.

Another thing that really impressed me is that the “Cuban in Cuba” (and I hate talking Cuba Cuban and Miami Cuban, because we are all Cubans), speaks well of Miami Cuban; there is nothing of the famous and promoted hatred felt by the Miami Cubans. No hatred, no bitterness. Resentment, unfortunately, is in Miami. But you know what? the good news is that it “heals” by traveling to Cuba and discovering the truth, and not be guided by the 24 hours of constant misinformation and hatred that the media offer.

What moves you the most each time you travel to Cuba?

The people, people …they give me much more than I can give to them. Every person I know gives me without asking anything in return, in terms of human qualities, cordial …; they are people who are not full of things, of objects, but they know what they have to share. That to me is the most important thing.

Authors

George B. Landini,

landini