IDENTIDADES 1 ENGLISH IDENTIDADES 3 ENGLISH | Page 69

and project of coexistence to take root depends on
reinventing citizens, trying to encourage their political participation, which has been dead in Cuba
for more than 60 years. Only then can we reinvent
the nation from its very roots. It is quite encouraging to see that myriad projects in Cuba take citizens as a civic and political telos, and not a historical one. This last point is evidence of enormous progress, in terms of modernity. When man
sees himself as unique and measures himself
against history, this results in disasters, like when
he does so with God. If this idea takes root, we
will have moved extremely forward on the road
to legitimation, after our new legitimacy is solidly
established.
Any participation must come from people functioning as citizens. This does not imply a specific
political commitment. There can be no coexistence without contrasting thoughts; if the citizenry
is not reinvented, coexistence is just as impossible. What is foremost and primary here is that it
be citizens who define the future, before organization or interest groups. We always have a tendency to corporatize the State the moment the citizenry snoozes. To start here is strategic for Cuba,
and for the present. So, let’s open, broaden and
strengthen this first circle of legitimation with enlightened and educated Cubans. This is the first
necessary step and it is on this that the second circle of strategic legitimation depends: invite the
participation of an enlightened citizenry.
How does coexistence get articulated between the
first and second circles? Creating a network of
strategic intelligence that deposits ideas, information and values into a common bank filled with
proposals, and encourages deliberative democracy in our pluralistic society. Along with an enlightened citizenry, deliberative democracy is the
best guarantee for a civic and political coexistence that could impact and stimulate cultural coexistence as a foundation for our nation. Civic
and political understanding among those who are
different can neutralize fundamentalist conflicts

about values and worldviews.In order for this to
happen, we must exile the idea of a specific,
closed group defining and deciding the nation’s
direction. This seems to be happening right now,
in a more or less ‘light’ version, that of the historic alliance between the sword (the military)
and the cross (the Church). This forging of politics with a counter-reformation-like alliance is lethal in highly complex, plural and diverse societies like the one in Cuba.
This is why it is clear that the success of a coexistence project in Cuba depends on people participating more as citizens than as a specific political
group. At this moment of re-found [