Communism Next Door.

A Tough Life for Cuban Kids

Edgar Gonzalez Alvarez, 16, studies computer science and electronics at a technical high school in Havana, the capital of Cuba. But his first love is rap music. Edgar lives in a suburb outside Havana, amid giant concrete apartment buildings that the Soviet Union helped build in the 1960s.

Edgar's family has a phone, but many families do not. He commutes to school by bus--an old, slow bus. He also hitchhikes because his family, like many in Cuba, cannot afford a car.

Edgar would love to visit the U.S., but such travel is not permitted unless he is visiting a relative or taking part in a cultural-exchange program. Through TV and his rapper friends, Edgar knows about the wealth of material goods in the U.S. He lives in a country with a faltering economy and a government that restricts freedom.

In Edgar's town, kids play baseball on the dusty streets, and new cars are rare.

Most are U.S.-made cars that date from the l950s, before President Fidel Castro came to power.

Edgar's school is competitive and difficult to get into. Like all Cuban schools, it has no gangs, guns, graffiti, or metal detectors. The classrooms have outdated computers, but they are among the best in Cuba.

"Every morning we say a chant to Che," Edgar told JS. "Pioneros por el comunismo, sedremos comos el Che." (We are pioneers for communism. That is why we sing to Che.)

Che Guevara, Edgar's hero, was a revolutionary from Argentina who believed that armed struggle was necessary to wipe out oppressive governments. Che fought beside Castro in the revolution that toppled the corrupt dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista in 1959.

A History of Upheaval

Cuba has a long history of upheaval. Spanish soldiers and priests arrived in the early 1500s and forced the native Indian people to work on farms and in mines. When the native population died out, the Spanish imported slaves from Africa. Today, most Cubans are descendants of people who came from Spain and Africa.

In 1898, during the Spanish-American War, Cuba won independence from Spain. The U.S. intervened in Cuba for many years, and foreign investors turned the island into a playground for tourists.

In 1959, a quarter of the Cuban people were illiterate. Many suffered from malnutrition. They worked hard in the tobacco and sugar fields for little pay. Their dissatisfaction helped propel Castro to power.

Looking for Help

At first, Castro made sweeping changes. Many foreigners were expelled from Cuba. The government seized plantations and turned them into government-run farms. Factories and transportation systems also became government property.

Medical care and schools improved, but the new government was an economic failure. Farms produced less, and factory production slowed.

Cuba needed help. In 1962, Castro turned to the Soviet Union, then the most powerful Communist country in the world, for grain, gasoline, medicine, and building supplies.

It was the height of the Cold War between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. U.S. leaders didn't like the idea of a Communist country so near. Congress imposed a trade embargo against Cuba, hoping to cripple its economy.

The embargo made Cuba even more dependent on the Soviet Union--for everything from bread to shoes. In 1991, the Soviet Union collapsed. Without Soviet aid, Cuba could not meet its people's needs.

"Took Us by Surprise"

The breakup of the Soviet Union "took us by surprise," says one college student. "Suddenly, we didn't have enough food. We had few medicines, no new shoes."

Under Castro, many people were still dissatisfied with their lives. The government controlled everything from food (often scarce) to power (often faulty).

To speak out against Castro was to risk torture or jail. But leaving the country was largely forbidden.

Tens of thousands of Cubans decided that they would do anything for freedom. They set sail in tiny boats, hoping to find a better life in the U.S. Many died at sea.

A Boy Named Elian

Last year, the plight of Cuban refugees became front-page news. In November 1999, 5-year-old Elian Gonzalez was found clinging to an inner tube off the Florida coast.

Elian's mother had died at sea while trying to reach the U.S. with her son. Elian went to live with relatives in Miami. After a bitter struggle, which ended in the U.S. courts, Elian returned to Cuba to live with his father (see box, below).

What kind of country did Elian return to? Little by little, Cuba's government has become more responsive to people's needs. Religion can now be practiced openly, and English-language lessons are given on TV. Rappers like Edgar, who believe Cuba's government is doing the best it can with limited resources, can even criticize the government, gently, through their music.

For many Cubans, change has not come quickly enough. But for students like Edgar, the change is significant. With his schooling and passion for music, Edgar is an example of the new Cuba--where people are starting to feel optimistic about their future.

Hope for the Future

Until Cuba can trade freely with the U.S., its possibilities are limited. Some trade has been established between the two nations, but first the U.S. wants Cuba to open its economy to more free enterprise.

A major question: How long will Communist rule last in Cuba? Fidel Castro, who will soon be 75 years old, has been in power longer than any other world leader. Many Cubans believe that his passing will lead to a struggle for power.

What lies ahead for Cuba? Said one U.S. visitor, "Cuba is a time capsule, locked in a box." People share, trade, and carry on, in the hope that their lives will get better.

                                 Your Turn
                                Word Match
___ 1. oppressive   a. unable to read
___ 2. intervene    b. absolute rule
___ 3. illiterate   c. harsh
___ 4. dictatorship d. trade restraint
___ 5. embargo      e. meddle

ANSWERS

1. C

2. E

3. A

4. B

5. D

Think About It

1. Explain what the visitor from the U.S. meant when he said, "Cuba is a time capsule, locked in a box."

2. Based on the changes occurring in Cuba, what do you think the country will be like in five years?

whatever Happened to Elian?

Elian Gonzalez, the young boy rescued from the sea near Miami, is back in Cuba. He lives with his father, stepmother, and baby stepbrother in Cardenas (kahr-DAY-nuhs), a small city about 70 miles east of Havana.

Elian is in the second grade and apparently has adjusted to life back in Cuba. The government is trying hard to keep reporters away from Elian, so that he can enjoy the normal life of a 7-year-old. But President Fidel Castro has used the young boy as a symbol of one of the last outposts of communism. Castro even attended Elian's birthday party at school.

CUBA

The only Communist country in the Western Hemisphere, Cuba is located due south of Florida. It consists of one main island and more than 1,600 smaller islands. The main island has three mountainous regions and only a few navigable rivers.

FACTS TO KNOW

AREA: 42,803 square miles, about the size of Tennessee.

POPULATION: 11,100,000; 75% urban; 25% rural.

GOVERNMENT: Communist, one-party state; President Fidel Castro.

ECONOMY: Government-controlled until 1993; some private enterprise now permitted.

Manufacturing: sugar production; Farming: sugar cane, tobacco, coffee; Mining: petroleum, mainly for its own use.

PER CAPITA GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT: $1,560 ($31,500 in U.S.)

LITERACY: 97% males; 96% females.

LIFE EXPECTANCY: 73 years, males; 78 years, females.

Questions

Study the map and Facts to Know to answer the following questions.

1. The capital of Cuba is

2. How many miles apart are Cuba and Key West, Florida, at their closest point?

3. The U.S. controls what part of Cuba?

4. What major city is located closest to 20[degrees]N, 76[degrees]W?

5. What British territory is located south of Cuba?

6. To fly from Cuba's capital to Miami, in which direction would you go?

7. What body of water borders Cuba on the south?

8. How many miles does Cuba extend from northwest to southeast?

9. What percentage of Cuba's people live in urban areas?

10. How many miles is Cuba from Mexico at its closest point?

ANSWERS

1. Havana

2. about 90 miles

3. Guantanamo Bay Naval Base

4. Santiago de Cuba

5. Cayman Islands

6. northeast

7. Caribbean Sea

8. about 710 miles

9. 75 percent

10. about 120 miles