TAMPA — Mayor Bob Buckhorn has been cool to local efforts to bring a Cuban Consulate to Tampa. But on Friday, all six candidates running in City Council District 7 said they like the idea — and not just because they think it would be good for Tampa business.
"By actually having more communication with Cuba, we have an opportunity to start to instill ideas and thoughts in the culture there that are more similar to what we have here," doctor and entrepreneur Cyril Spiro told the Tampa Tiger Bay Club.
Former teacher Avis Harrison said Tampa's century-old ties to Cuba make it a natural fit for a consulate.
"Currently St. Pete is trying to get a consulate over there," she said. "Tampa has more of the heritage here."
The son of Cuban exiles, attorney Luis Viera said Cuban trade should have a goal of ensuring there are economic benefits for the city and a larger goal of encouraging conditions that give Cubans the right to have a stake in their own future.
Noting that Buckhorn recently went on a trade mission to China, which has its own bad record on human rights, La Gaceta assistant editor Gene Siudut said there's no reason to hold Cuba to a different standard — one that would continue, like the embargo, to hurt the 11 million people living on the island.
"We have a relationship already," said Siudut, noting that Cubans and other immigrants built the cultural clubs of Ybor City as early HMOs. "The federal government came and said, 'Now you don't.' I'd like to see that go away."
Emergency room doctor Jim Davison likewise noted the United States has relationships with countries that repress LGBT citizens and he said "the future of freedom, health and economic stability of Cuba" depends on an American presence that models political freedom and an American way of life.
Retired Tampa police officer Orlando Gudes said he sees Tampa as a cultural hub and suggested it should take a page from other Florida communities that regularly reach out to bring a variety of people and businesses from other countries.
District 7 covers northern Tampa and New Tampa. The six candidates are running in a special election on Nov. 8 to replace council member Lisa Montelione, who is leaving the seat early to run for the state House of Representatives.
If no one wins a majority then, the two top finishers will head to a runoff on Dec. 6. The race is nonpartisan.
On other issues, the candidates offered a broader range of opinions and ideas.
On police-community relations, Gudes, who founded a youth football and cheerleading league, said the city needs more truant officers. Spiro advocated for a wider use of body cameras.
Harrison, the mother of an Iraq war veteran, praised the creation of the city's new Citizens Review Board but said police should get more training to deal with mental illnesses such as post-traumatic stress disorder. Viera said officials should watch the review board for ideas about improving the department.
Black Lives Matter, Siudut said, is a reaction to a real issue because many African-Americans feel they are not treated the same as others. He said Tampa should look at the makeup of its police force, including its higher ranks, to make sure those officials have the perspective they need to understand the community they protect.
Davison said it's not police brutality that keeps people from going out of their homes and said there needs to be a national conversation about race.
"I have news for you,'' he said. "Both sides are not going to want to hear what's going to have to be said."