On the homepage today, we publish the last installment of my “Oslo Journal” — notes from the Oslo Freedom Forum. I mention Danilo Maldonado, known as “El Sexto.” He is a Cuban street artist, dissident, and former political prisoner. (Maybe I should say “sometime political prisoner.” Like many, he’s always in and out.) I will have more to say about Maldonado in the next National Review. But I’d like to mention something further, here on the Corner.
Natan Sharansky — originally Anatoly Shcharansky, and a veteran of the Gulag — speaks of two kinds of societies: free societies and fear societies. The Castros’ Cuba, like all police states, is a fear society. Those of us lucky to live in free societies have a hard time imagining the pervasiveness of fear in a totalitarian state.
Again, lucky us.
One of Maldonado’s stunts — and I don’t use that word pejoratively — was to distribute a flier with the word “Fear” on the front. Then, on the back, he invited people to write down their fear: and then rip up the flier (symbolically ripping up the fear as well).
To us, this seems some kind of kindergarten exercise. To others — other adults — it can be very meaningful.
The Maldonados of the world perform a priceless service.