Today the U.S. embassy will officially re-open in Havana, Cuba, with Secretary of State John Kerry presiding over the flag-raising, fifty-four years after President Eisenhower slammed the door shut on diplomatic relations with Cuba.
How we got to this moment is detailed in this story in Mother Jones.
What brought about this radical change was a unique alignment of political stars: a shift in public opinion, particularly among Cuban Americans; a transition in Cuban leadership from Fidel to Raúl, followed by Cuba’s slow but steady evolution toward a market socialist economy; and Latin American leaders no longer willing to accept Cuba’s exclusion from regional affairs. Seizing the opportunity were a handful of dedicated US legislators, well-financed lobbyists, Alan Gross’ aggressive legal team, an activist pope from Latin America, and a woman hell-bent on getting pregnant.
It sounds like something cooked up by Ian Fleming and Monty Python.
It might not be a good deal for Jeb Bush but it is for the Cuban people.
I find it intriguing that the same three marines who took the flag down in 1961 are back in Havana to see it go up again.