U.S. public overwhelmingly backs travel to Cuba

[Jimmy2]

Travel to Cuba is back on the Congressional agenda with the introduction of the Freedom to Travel to Cuba Act in both the House and the Senate. The House bill, sponsored by Representatives Bill Delahunt (D-Mass.) and Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), would allow all Americans to visit Cuba. In April, 2009 the Obama administration relaxed restrictions on travel to Cuba, but only for the purpose of visiting relatives.

The Freedom to Travel legislation may come up for a vote in early 2010, and the House Foreign Affairs Committee employed the common mechanism of bringing witnesses to testify on the subject in a hearing on November 19th.

But instead of seeking the opinion of a few individuals, what if Congress sought public input from a cross-section of Americans? In fact, there is evidence of what Congress would learn. A national survey by WorldPublicOpinion.org in spring, 2009 shows that a large majority (70%) of the public thinks that "Americans should be free to visit Cuba;" a position taken by clear majorities of Republicans, Democrats, and Independents.

Though the Castro regime is very unpopular in the United States, the public favors lifting the travel ban to Cuba because most Americans (71%) feel that increasing travel and trade "will lead Cuba in a more open and democratic direction," not that it will "strengthen the communist regime in Cuba."

While China and North Korea have endured accusations of Communist tyranny similar to those directed at the Castro regime, American law does not forbid travel to those countries. Indeed, the U.S. government forbids travel to no other country on earth.

The policy of the United States towards Cuba has been shaped substantially by Floridians' strong convictions with voices from South Florida clearly audible at the hearings on Capitol Hill. Representatives Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Connie Mack, both from South Florida and members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, have insisted that a more open relationship with Cuba would only strengthen the Castro regime and ardently oppose lifting restrictions on travel to Cuba. Florida Democrats Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Kendrick Meek, and Alcee Hastings have also signed a letter to Nancy Pelosi indicating their opposition to the legislation.

However, the Cuban-American community, long resistant to a softer stance toward Cuba, now favors lifting the travel ban. The Florida-based firm Bendixen and Associates reported this fall that Cuban-Americans now favor by 2-1 (59% vs. 29%) "all American citizens being able to travel to Cuba" — a sharp turnaround from the results of a similar poll in 2002. Younger Cuban-Americans and more recent immigrants from Cuba tended to be more in favor of lifting the travel ban than were their elders. A survey of Cuban-Americans by Florida International University and the Brookings Institute produced similar results.

What about the Cuban people? Polling from Cuba is rare. However, the International Republican Institute (IRI) just released a poll that found that 86% favored changing Cuba's economic system, and the change most favored was "being able to visit other countries abroad without an exit visa." Cubans also dislike travel prohibitions placed on them by their government.

Americans, Cuban-Americans, and Cubans themselves are quite familiar with nearly fifty years of stalemate in US-Cuba relations. Will the Castro brothers listen to their public? Will America's representatives on Capitol Hill listen to views of the majority of their constituents and allow free travel to Cuba?

[thechenman]

If travel was opened up, I know that I would be going...

[bassman]

Indeed, I'm a US citizen and was within 2 weeks of leaving for North Korea (with a British tourgroup) when the Koreans revoked my visa. I was bummed out!

[thechenman]

Indeed, I'm a US citizen and was within 2 weeks of leaving for North Korea (with a British tourgroup) when the Koreans revoked my visa. I was bummed out!

That truly blows. It would have been some trip.

[Bunker1028]

It would be my next vacation destination.