Following the events of September 11, the Coast Guard was called into service at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, a longtime U. S. Navy base that was used as a holding area for Al Qaeda and Taliban detainees. This piece is a record of what epitomizes the United States Coast Guard's purpose in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. No vessel enters or departs from the port without a USCG escort - not even the Coast Guard's own cutter, Harriet Lane. Port Security Unit 305 of Ft. Eustis, Virginia, staffed primarily by reservists, had extensive work in "homeland security" before the term was widely used. Shortly after the tragedy of September 11, 2001, PSU 305 unit was deployed to New York City for 45 days to aid in the security of the New York harbor. In January of 2002, this unit was again called to leave family and jobs as firefighters, police officers, doctors and nurses to serve six months active duty in Cuba. "I have unending respect for the men and women of this unit," says the artist. "They don't speak of their part in the aftermath of 9/11 experience as heroic - just as doing their jobs." That is what they continued to do miles away in Cuba...escorting the Harriet Lane. US Coast Guard Art Program 2003 Collection, Ob ID # 200301, "Escorting the Harriet Lane," Karen Loew, pastel, 16 x 20
