Baltimore police, Maryland State Troopers and stadium security guards recreated the same suppression of political speech that characterizes life in Cuba. The American Civil Liberties Union succeeded in getting areas set aside for demonstrations outside the ballpark, which prevented people from being arrested. We also had lawyers standing by, maintained telephone contact through the evening with Miami protesters and have invited anyone who feels that their rights were violated on the streets to contact us.

Still, police confiscated signs, denied ticket holders entry and strong-armed fans out of the stadium because their messages were ``too political.'' The same authorities seemed to ignore members of the Cuban delegation who waved flags and banners, and wore caps with the equally political message ``Down with the Embargo.''

A sign belonging to Milagros Velasco of the Miami-based Democracy Movement was confiscated because it read ``Castro's Record: 500,000 rafters, 2 million exiles''; it was no bigger than the front of her T-shirt. Mothers Against Repression were threatened with mace and escorted out of the stadium because they were wearing T-shirts with the message ``Cuba si, Castro no.'' Ramon Saul Sanchez, also of the Democracy Movement, was denied admission for 1 1/2 hours because he had a sign hanging around his neck: ``Let's play fair -- justice, democracy and human rights now.''

These are dangerous messages to the Castro regime. America's police ended up obliging Castro and shielding the Cuban team and their fans from exposure to democratic ideals. More important, police prevented leaders of the exile movement from reminding the American public that a Cuba, in which human rights systematically are denied, is not to be romanticized.

ACLU leaders are meeting with, and investigating the complaints of, Miamians whose right to protest was denied.

The Cigar Aficionado magazine brouhaha at Miami International Airport was another demonstration of how the totalitarian weapon of censorship is used. Cuba bans the magazine one month because of its characterization of life in the United States; Miami airport authorities ban the next issue because of its ``tone'' and portrayal of Cuba as a tourist venue. The threat of an ACLU lawsuit and prompt action by Miami-Dade Mayor Alex Penelas put an end to airport censorship.

The hunger strike by relatives and friends of Cubans who were being indefinitely detained at the Krome Detention Center brought attention to a third example: the immigration ``reform'' that requires deportation as people who aren't U.S. citizens complete prison sentences. Castro refuses to take anyone back. So, the U.S. government suspends basic legal principles and locks these people up indefinitely -- even though they otherwise are presumed to have paid their debt to society. It is a gross injustice that the ACLU fought when it was pending in Congress and now is challenging in the courts.

Sanchez now has started a hunger strike in downtown Miami to compel the United States to return the Democracy Movement's boat, Human Rights, which the government seized in international waters. It was not the first boat seized. The ACLU helped secure the return of one vessel, and we have joined the fight against the current seizure. The government has tried to justify the seizure because the boat, allegedly on its way to Cuba, was filled with literature about the Declaration of Universal Human Rights.

Is this the kind of dangerous offense that our government should be on guard to protect us from? Is the government doing anything more than obliging Castro by preventing the Democracy Movement from spreading its message to the Cuban people?

Yes, we need a new approach to Cuba. But we need an approach that is worthy of the ideals of democracy and freedom for which America is supposed to stand. We don't need policies that mimic Fidel Castro, serve the needs of his regime or turn the United States into an abuser of human rights.