Harry Henry
Harry Henry and Luis La Rosa were the the last two citizens of Cuba who continued to be employed by the United States at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, in Cuba.[1][2] When Fidel Castro came to power in Cuba he opposed the USA's continued occupation of the base. He stopped cashing the USA's rent checks. But several hundred Cubans the USA employed at the base were allowed to continue to work there. Through age attrition the number of commuters dropped from hundreds in the 1960s, to around 50, in 1985, to just these two elderly men, by 2012. By tradition the remaining Cuban commuters would give a retiring commuter a carved wooden cane. At their well attended retirement ceremony the base commander Captain John Nettleton and Cuban-American Commander Carlos Del Toro presided. Del Toro's goodbye speech thanked the men for making a difference in Cuban-American relations. Nettleson gave each man a cane carged with a horse's head, since there were no remaining commuters to give them one.
Henry, an office worker, 82 years old, responded in English, saying that he thought he had a couple more years left in him.[1]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Ben Fox, Suzette LaBoy (2012-12-14). "Last 2 Cuban 'commuters' retire from US Navy base at Guantanamo Bay: One of the world's most unusual commutes comes to an end" (in English). Associated Press. Archived from the original on 2012-12-15. http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.newser.com%2Farticle%2Fda35ms3g0%2Flast-2-cuban-commuters-retire-from-us-navy-base-at-guantanamo-bay.html&date=2012-12-15. Retrieved 2012-11-. "As workers aged and retired, the number of commuters dwindled from the hundreds to about 50 people by 1985, according to a base newsletter, the Guantanamo Bay Gazette. By June 2005, it was down to Henry, La Rosa and two others, all earning about $12 an hour, an eye-popping salary by Cuban standards, according to another base newsletter, The Wire."
- ↑ Robert Lamb (2007-01-26). "Two hearts, one spiriit, in friendship". Guantanamo Bay Naval Base: Guantanamo Bay Gazette. p. 1. Archived from the original on 2012-12-15. http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cnic.navy.mil%2Fnavycni%2Fgroups%2Fpublic%2F%40cnrse%2F%40gtmo%2Fdocuments%2Fdocument%2Fcnic_048689.pdf&date=2012-12-15. Retrieved 2012-12-15.
