U.S. 2005
August 23
Just received some paperwork in the mail from [organization I’m traveling to Cuba with: legality = can’t use official name – henceforth, to be called SPOOCR (Stop Pissing On Our Constitutional Rights‘) pronounced ‘Spooker‘ because it’s damn scary that our government has selectively revoked our constitutional right to travel freely, and we’re okay with that].
There are forms to fill out for arrangements of our flight to Jose Martí Airport in Havana. There’s also a shitload of questions that require answers for the OFAC (Office of Foreign Assets Control) license under which I’m granted monitored and restricted travel to this forbidden land.

The questions are pages long…
What is my birth country? Birth city? My mother’s birth country? My father’s birth country? What is my gender? My height? My weight? My hair, eye, skin color (called “ethnicity” with the instruction to “be as specific as possible”)?
What is my occupation? Why did I choose this occupation? What was my previous occupation? Why did I change occupations?
For what reason do I want to travel to Cuba?
I’m guessing that neither ‘I don’t know’ nor ‘Just to see’ will qualify as an acceptable answer for this American Inquisition.
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