The Beat Memo
The country I have chosen to focus on is Cuba. I am determined to find and examine the Cuban population in New York.
In the 2010 census it was reported that there was an estimated 1,785,547 Cubans in the United States. However, in 2017 the Pew Research Center analysis of the U.S Census Bureau reported an estimated 2.3 million Cubans in the U.S. This was based on self-identified and Hispanics with Cuban origin. In the NYC tri-state area, there is an estimated 70,000 Cuban people. With New York and New Jersey combined there are an estimated 154,165 Cuban people, the second largest population being in New Jersey at around 80,000. In the home country of Cuba there are around 11,326,616 people.
Although the third largest population of Cuban people is in New York, there is not one definitive region where they all live. New Jersey’s Union City and West New York (also known as “Havana on the Hudson,” is home to the second largest population of Cuban people. Since the 1960-70’s The Cuban population in New York and New Jersey has blended in with that of Puerto Ricans and Dominicans.
It is hard to say because there isn’t one specific field that Cuban people are working in. They have integrated with other communities and populations making them a diverse group of people in the U.S.
Cubans started entering the U.S. in large numbers in 1959. This was a direct result of the Cuban communist revolution led by Fidel Castro. The revolution was a movement against the former Cuban President Fulgencio Batista and his military style dictatorship. Fidel Castro was sworn in on February 16th, 1959.
From April-October in the 1980’s, more than 125,000 Cuban immigrants flooded the U.S. Castro opened port Mariel and allowed whoever wanted to leave the country to do so, as long as they had someone picking them up. He also freed and allowed prisoners and mental patients to flood the port. They did this via boats, the movement is known as the Mariel Boatlift. It ended after six months by mutual agreement between Cuba and the U.S. Cuban people had a difficult time conforming to the communist government policies that Castro was implementing.
They fled the failing Cuban economy in search of new opportunities and political freedom.
Some organizations I have found in New York are:
us-cubanormalization.org
cubanculturalcenter.org
centerforcubanstudies.org
I was also able to find a Baruch directory of Cuba-related organizations and websites:
https://www.baruch.cuny.edu/wsas/academics/anthropology/documents/DirectoryCubaBook.pdf
The Cuban government closely monitors the Cuban media. It is known that Cuba has a very repressive media presence. Often, things are censored or not fully disclosed. The Granma newspaper is the only national daily paper and the Communist party of Cuba controls it. They’re also weekly publications known as, Tribuna de La Habana and Juventud Rebelde. There is a biweekly newsmagazine known as the Bohemia. Cuba’s official new agency is Prensa Latina and they publish several magazines in Cuba. Cubans However cannot read books, magazines, or newspapers that have not been approved by the government. They’re also not allowed receiving any sort of media from other countries or other people visiting the country. I have witnessed this as I have traveled to Cuba twice and experienced the censorship firsthand.
The relationship between the U.S. and Cuba has been strained for more than sixty years. When Obama was president, he and Raul Castro took steps to normalize the bilateral relationship between the two. However, the Trump administration has reversed a lot of the progress made by former President Obama, including diplomatic ties, travel, and trade. According to The Havana Consulting group:
For some years now, remittances have been the main source of income for Cuban families. In 2015, their value in cash was 1.95 times higher than the aggregate of the average annual salaries of all of the country’s workers.
Almost my entire family is still in Cuba and for every $100 we send the government takes $30. Remittances to Cuba are significant to the country’s economy but it seems the government benefits more so than its people.
The most recent year I could find was 2018, where the GDP per capita in Cuba was reported at 8,821.82 USD. This places Cuba’s rank at 76 as estimated by World Bank in 2019. I also came across an article that claims the government in Cuba is poorer than it is actually reporting according to a study by the Inter-American Development Bank. The article is dated Jan. 2018 and I am providing the link for anyone who would like to read it.
https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/cuba/article195681589.html
Some of the major industries in Cuba include: petroleum, nickel, cobalt, pharmaceuticals, tobacco, steel, cement, and sugar.
The current system of government in Cuba is socialist. This has been the case since 1959; the adopted principal became “one state, one party.” Although it is a socialist system of government it has taken on a lot of communist characteristics. Isla de la Juventud and other minor archipelagos also fall under Cuban control.
The only information I was able to find on the NY consul general is as follows:
Consulate of Cuba in New York
315 Lexington Avenue, 38th Street
New York, NY 10016
USA
(212) 689 7215
Some other websites claim the consulate in NYC is closed and available in Washington DC. I have reached out to both contacts and have yet to hear back for options in NYC.
Potential Story Ideas:
- How does the idea of success differ between Cuban immigrants and Cuban-American citizens? Do Cuban immigrants believe that fleeing their country helped them reach success? Do Cuban-American citizens feel that Cuban immigrants did the right thing by fleeing? I essentially want to understand more of how Cuban immigrants and Cuban-American citizen’s perspectives differ if at all. How has being raised under Cuban law affected the perspective or opinions of someone who was not born in the country but raised by Cuban born parents?
- How does lack of media affect mood and future goals? It is known that Cuban media is controlled by the government and censored to fit the governments interests rather than to inform its people. I would like to dive deeper into the realm of “is being ignorant really being at bliss?” How do Cuban people know if they’re being told the truth or anything useful? Is it possible to progress in life with little to no information on the happenings of not only the country but also the world?
- How has Covid-19 further hindered Cuban people? With lack of resources including food, money, electricity, and medication how have the people of Cuba managed to survive?