My generation is far removed from from what actually lead to the embargo placed on Cuba. With renewed talks and discussions of lifting sanctions a lot of my peers even question why we ever sanctioned them to begin with. My younger cousin told us he was the only one in his 8th grade classroom who knew what the Cuban Missile Crisis was. People even thought I was crazy for rejoicing in Fidel Castro's death. Some, especially in my home state of Kentucky, don't understand why I know the entire history of the United States-Cuban relations. Having family make the short journey from Havana to Key West has allowed me to gain a unique perspective.
In order to understand why first generation Cuban-American citizens hate the Castro brothers so passionately, you need to understand the history of Cuba. Fulgencio Batista led a government filled with corruption and mafia leaders. Fidel Castro promised the Cubans a revolution that would lead to a free Cuba. With the help of his brother Raul Castro and Che Guevara Fidel became the president of Cuba in 1959. In 1960 all American businesses in Cuba were nationalized without compensation. Which lead to the failed CIA mission, The Bay of Pigs, in 1961. In that same year, Castro proclaimed Cuba a communist country, allied with the USSR and the United States cut all diplomatic ties. Fidel promised the Cuban people freedom. Instead he gave them propaganda, speech limitations, persecution of opposition, and a military state. Che was beloved by the Cubans. Fidel sent him abroad to help overthrow governments, which lead to his death. Che's death let Fidel eliminate any competition in Cuba's "fair elections." In 1962 the United States discovered Russian missiles on Cuban soil pointed at America.
This is where you have to understand why the fight still continues. In 1962 my grandmother was a high school student in Key West, Florida. She said there was no real panic among those who lived there. Yes, they had a naval base, but everyone wondered why anyone would even consider hitting them over a major city. Her uncle, Hector Castillo, was working for the CIA to translate the Cuban radios. She told me about the time Hector was asked to translate a phrase for the CIA. He couldn't find anyone who knew what the phrase was since it was an old slang term. So my great great grandfather, Tranqulino Castillo, ended up having to help.
There are families that have stories like mine filled with family members who stepped up to help our country when they needed to. There are families that had to grab what they could fit in their backpacks and sneak out of the country in hopes to make it to Key West. The ones who stepped up and the ones who fled know and saw the brutal dictators grasp. In South Florida, my grandmother says, you can't win over the older Republican Cuban-Americans unless you are anti-Castro.
Now there are more liberal Cuban-Americans and decades of no change in Cuba. Those who experienced the horrifying truths of the Castro administration are starting to fade into the minority. It doesn't matter if Cuba is a dream vacation or home. Things are going to change with Cuba and its relationship with America. However, it's a matter of what each country will gain from it.
