Emilio Milián (September 8, 1931 – March 15, 2001) was a Cuban-American radio commentator and newscaster. Known for his criticism both of communism and of terrorist activity among the Cuban exiles in
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
, he was the victim of a car-bombing attack in 1976 which left him disabled.
Biography
Emilio Milián was born in the Las Villas Province of Cuba in September 1931. He emigrated to Mexico in 1965 with his wife and three children. After some months, the family moved to
Miami
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
, in the US state of
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
. There, Milián began working for a radio station named WMIE as a sports commentator, and also bought a print shop. This station was eventually renamed
WQBA
WQBA (1140 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a Spanish talk format. Licensed to Miami, Florida, United States, the station is currently owned by Uforia Audio Network with programming from TUDN Radio. Previous call letters were WMIE, owned by ...
, and Milián rose to become its news director in 1971. He presented a Spanish program on WQBA in the 1970s, which was popular among the Cuban exile population in southern Florida. ''
The Miami Herald
The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by the McClatchy Company and headquartered in Doral, Florida, a city in western Miami-Dade County and the Miami metropolitan area, several miles west of Downtown Miami.
Milian was best known for criticizing
communism
Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...
on his radio program "Habla el Pueblo" (The People Speak). However, he also criticized the Cuban exiles who carried out terrorist attacks against the Cuban government, and who believed themselves to be Cuban patriots. The positions he took brought him praise, but also led to him being branded a traitor, and to his receiving death threats. In April 1976, a bomb went off in Milián's car when he started it to return home from work. Milian lost both his legs in the attack, which is generally attributed to his outspoken criticism of violence committed by Cuban exiles. Milián also suffered injuries to his
ear drum
In the anatomy of humans and various other tetrapods, the eardrum, also called the tympanic membrane or myringa, is a thin, cone-shaped membrane that separates the external ear from the middle ear. Its function is to transmit sound from the air ...
s and eyes.
Two Cuban exiles,
Gaspar Jiménez
Gaspar Jiménez Escobedo (October 6, 1935 – October 29, 2014) was a Cuban exile living in Miami. An associate of Luis Posada Carriles, he was convicted of attempting to kidnap a Cuban consul in Mexico in 1976, for which he served 27 months in pri ...
and Gustavo Castillo, were indicted by a
grand jury
A grand jury is a jury—a group of citizens—empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a pe ...
for the bombing in April 1981, nearly five years after it took place. Investigators in the case had identified Jiménez as a chief suspect. A witness said he saw Jiménez working on Milian's car shortly before the bombing. The indictments were kept secret, as the two men were serving prison sentences in Mexico on charges of having kidnapped a Cuban consul, and prosecutors were afraid they would attempt to avoid arrest if the indictments were known. However, soon after Jiménez was released from prison in 1983, the indictments were dropped, with the prosecuting attorney stating that there was insufficient evidence. No one was prosecuted for the bombing.
Milian left his job at WQBA after the attack, but returned to working in radio in 1989. He later worked at 670-AM, another radio station, and held this position until late 2000. He died in March 2001, at the age of 69. During the later part of his life, he suffered from heart disease and
diabetes
Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ap ...