A young Cuban woman who is serving voluntarily in the United States Army responded to those who call her a traitor for wearing the U.S. military uniform. In a video shared on TikTok, she defended her decision and made it clear that loving Cuba does not mean supporting the island's government.
Sheila Ramírez (@sheilaarmz), who emigrated from Cuba when she was 16, decided to respond to one of the criticisms she says she frequently receives on social media: why she serves a country in which she was not born.
"Why do they call me a traitor? For willingly serving a country when in Cuba military service is compulsory for most young people. I was never a revolutionary," she expressed.
The young woman remembered that, although she left the island as a teenager, she had enough time to understand the Cuban reality and question what she had been taught during her childhood.
"I left Cuba when I was sixteen. I had plenty of time to see how everything worked there, to understand all the lies we had always been told, which only made me realize who the real enemy was as soon as I set foot here in the United States," he asserted.
Sheila insisted that her feelings for Cuba remain unchanged, but that doesn’t mean she has to identify with the political system of her homeland.
"I love my roots, I love the land where I grew up, but that doesn't mean I have to defend that government," he stated.
He also compared his decision to voluntarily join the U.S. Army with the Active Military Service in Cuba, which is mandatory for men subject to Cuban legal provisions.
"Serving this country, wearing this uniform is never going to be a contradiction for me. Being Cuban has given me a host of opportunities that no one has in Cuba. No one has," she stated.
During her reflection, the young woman also referred to the desire to emigrate that, in her opinion, many Cubans share due to the difficulties they face in their country.
"The dream of all Cubans is to leave Cuba for anywhere, not even specifically here, to the United States, just anywhere. And it's sad," he lamented.
Sheila is not the only Cuban who has publicly shared her experience in the U.S. Armed Forces. In October, a 22-year-old woman with Cuban roots recounted how her experience has been after nearly two years in the United States Army.
Additionally, in April, Cuban Lea Nieves showcased on social media a part of her life as a member of the Army, sharing details of her military experience.
For Sheila, serving in the United States Armed Forces represents an opportunity that she chose to seize on her own and of which she is proud.
"I dare say that typically Latinos serving in the United States military do so out of their own volition. In fact, we want to be more than Americans because we appreciate a little more the opportunities this country offers that we know our home countries do not." he concluded.
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