Spokane’s Refugees: Cuba

 Getting into the States from Cuba is a difficult endeavor, especially for political and economic refugees. In this next installation of our series on refugees’ countries of origin, we’ll take a look at Cuba.

Cuba

   Officially called the Republic of Cuba, this nation is comprised of several Caribbean islands and archipelagos: la isla de Cuba, la isla de Juventud, el archipiélago de Colorados, el archipiélago de Sabana-Camagüey, los Jardines de la Reina, and el archipiélago de Canarreos. It is bordered (as much as an island nation can be bordered) by the United States, the Bahamas, Jamaica, the Cayman Islands, and Mexico. The island was originally inhabited by the Taíno and Ciboney peoples, and was invaded by the Spanish starting in 1511. Within a century, European diseases had destroyed most of the native population. The Spanish rulers of the island imported many African slaves to manage plantations and the Cuban population eventually became mostly mulata. In 1868 Cuba began to seek independence from Spain, but did not achieve this independence until 1898, when the Spanish-American War began with the sinking of the USS Maine and ended with Cuba’s freedom. Cuba maintained democracy until 1933, when a series of coups began. Democratic government was restored in 1940, and ended again in 1952 with the beginning of a new series of coups. Fidel Castro took control in 1959 and only ceded control in 2008, to his brother, Raúl Castro. In 1961 Cuba became priviledged client-state of the Soviet Union, and in 1963 the United States began a complete diplomatic and trade embargo against the country. With each coup, different groups of Cubans were persecuted and have fled predominantly to the United States both as refugees and illegal immigrants.

   The name Cuba comes from the Taíno language, although competing claims argue that it was named after a defunct Portuguese town also named Cuba.

   Cuba has been accused of numerous human rights abuses, including torture, arbitrary imprisonment, unfair trials, and extrajudicial executions. In 2008 it was the world’s second largest imprisoner of journalists; illegal internet use is accompanied by multiple-year prison sentences.

   Cuba has excellent health care—at least, better than the United States in terms of life expectancy, access to healthcare, and infant mortality—and a decent economy, ranked 114 out of the planet’s 226 countries. Its economy is based on industrial production, biotechnology, pharmaceutical production, tourism, mining, fishing, and speciality agriculture.