Gloria Estefan’s “Mi Tierra” Soundtracked Celebrations Of Fidel Castro’s Death

Upon the news of the death of Fidel Castro on Friday (Nov. 25), Gloria Estefan’s “Mi Tierra” (My Homeland) soundtracked celebrations of his passing all throughout the Cuban community of Miami.

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The 1993 single lives on her Mi Tierra album and serves as a tribute to Cuba and the exiles directly affected by the Castro regime. The song was written by her husband Emilio Estefan who, like Gloria, was an exile from the island at just 2 years old. Her father, José Manuel Fajardo, was a bodyguard of former Cuban U.S.-backed president, Fulgencio Batista.

Gloria took to Instagram after learning of Castro’s passing to express her feelings toward El Comandante‘s death. In a lengthy post she wrote: “Although the death of a human being is rarely cause for celebration, it is the symbolic death of the destructive ideologies that he espoused that, I believe, is filling the Cuban exile community with renewed hope and a relief that has been long in coming.”

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Castro’s death—mourned or celebrated—has shaken the world.

Although the death of a human being is rarely cause for celebration, it is the symbolic death of the destructive ideologies that he espoused that, I believe, is filling the Cuban exile community with renewed hope and a relief that has been long in coming. And although the grip of Castro’s regime will not loosen overnight, the demise of a leader that oversaw the annihilation of those with an opposing view, the indiscriminate jailing of innocents, the separation of families, the censure of his people’s freedom to speak, state sanctioned terrorism and the economic destruction of a once thriving & successful country, can only lead to positive change for the Cuban people and our world. May freedom continue to ring in the United States, my beautiful adopted country, and may the hope for freedom be inspired and renewed in the heart of every Cuban in my homeland and throughout the world. 🇨🇺🇺🇸 Aunque la muerte de un ser humano es raramente causa para celebrar, es la muerte simbólica de las ideologías destructivas que el patrocinó que, en mi opinión, están llenando al exilio Cubano de esperanza renovada y un alivio que ha tardado mucho en llegar. Y aunque el agarre del régimen Castrista no se aflojara de un día para otro, el deceso de un líder que supervisó el aniquilamiento de aquellos con puntos de vistas opuestos al suyo, el encarcelamiento de inocentes, la separación de familias, la censura de la libertad de expresión, el esparcimiento de terrorismo sancionado por su gobierno y la destrucción económica de un país exitoso que prosperaba, solo puede llevar a cambios positivos para el pueblo Cubano y el mundo. Que la libertad siga viva en los Estados Unidos, mi bello país adoptivo, y que la esperanza para la libertad crezca y se renueve en los corazones de cada Cubano en mi tierra natal y a través del mundo.🇨🇺🇺🇸

A photo posted by Gloria Estefan (@gloriaestefan) on Nov 26, 2016 at 9:48am PST