Cuba is a nation of islands about ninety miles away from the Florida Keys. About one third of the area is mountainous, which includes Guaniguanco chain, the largest system Sierra Maestra, Pinar del Rio, and the Escambrey (everyculture.com, 1). The current population of Cuba is about 11.8 million people. The nation descended from European and African regions, so about half of the total population are mulatto. The Cuban flag colors are blue, red, and white. Cuba has been running under the rule of Fidel Castro for the past sixty years. Back in 1959, Fidel and his army overthrew the party of people who were originally ruling the island. Cuba’s climate is very tropical, however, there is a period with an abundance of rain storms that starts in mid-May and lasts until nearly the end of October. Cuba is well known for getting hit by hurricanes due to its climate and location.
Overtime, Cuba has developed substantially and has become a strong, independent nation. They have developed in many different areas and play an important role in American History. The Republic of Cuba has unique, interesting cultural traditions, surprising growth in their economy and industries, as well as the impact it has had on The United States of America over the course of its existence. “Cuba was first settled by the Taino Native Americans.and Guanahatabey. They were hunters, fishers, and farmers. Christopher Columbus landed at Cuba in 1492 and claimed the land for Spain. Columbus named the land Isla Juana, but later it would be called Cuba, which comes from the local Native American name of coabana. The first Spanish settlement on Cuba was Baracoa which was founded by Diego Velazquez de Cuellar in 1511.” (Every Culture, 1)
“Many of the people of Cuba were not happy with this. Rebel leader Fidel Castro organized a revolution to overthrow Batista. In 1959, Fidel Castro was able to overthrow Batista’s government and gain control of the country. He declared Cuba a socialist country and allied Cuba with the Soviet Union. Cuba became a major player in the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. First, the United States unsuccessfully tried to overthrow Castro through the Bay of Pigs invasion. Then, the Soviet Union tried to establish a nuclear missile base at Cuba causing the Cuban Missile Crisis.” (Ducksters Educational Site, 1) Fidel Castro stayed in power for 50 years and then handed over the government to his younger brother Raul.
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“Because of Cuba’s climate, tropical fruits and root vegetables (malanga, potatoes, boniatos, and yucca) are incorporated in many dishes. A number of dishes include seafood as it is readily abundant on the island. Other popular starchy foods are plantains, bananas, and rice. African slaves get the credit for flattening and frying green plantains called tostones. China’s influence was significant as they were the first to bring in rice. Rice is one of the biggest staple foods not just of Cuba but of all Latin America. Rice was actually considered exotic for many years as it was not native to Cuba or Spain. Some dishes you might recognize are moros y cristianos (mixed black beans and rice) and pollo en salsa (chicken in sauce). Also, a tortilla in Cuba is a simple egg omelet (as it is in Spain); it is not related in any way to a Mexican tortilla. Cubans love pizza, too.
Some favorite toppings include ham, chorizo, and onion. Chinese immigrants had yet another impact on Cuban food—la caja china, ‘the Chinese box.’ This contraption was derived from Cubans watching Chinese laborers in Havana’s Chinatown cooking their meals on makeshift wooden boxes with fires that placed the heat at the top of the box. This efficient method left the traditional lechón asado (slow roasted pork), soft and tender, which solidified the use of la caja china as a requisite at major Cuban festivities.”
Cuba’s capital is Havana, located in the north-west region of the island which is south of the Florida Keys. Previously, this city was one of the biggest, well-known cities in the world. Its unique architecture and extraordinary infrastructural designs show how amazing and beautiful the island is. Currently, there are five different ethnic groups in Cuba, they are: Yoruba, Mandingas, Congos, Carabalies, and Bantu (Cuban-culture.com, 1) Havana became an official city in 1592. However, as early as 1515, there Europeans had already settled in the city. Havana is located in the heart of Cuba. Havana is also one of the oldest cities in all of Cuba.
There are fifteen provinces in Cuba, and Havana is located in la Habana province. In Cuba, the provinces are sometimes called municipalities. Referring to this, Havana is located in the La Habana municipality. In Havana the Almendares River runs all the way from the northern end to the southern end. In the West Indies, Havana is the fourth most populated metropolitan area. Not only that, Havana is the most populated city in all of Cuba. The city span is about seven hundred and twenty-eight square kilometers. On those seven hundred and twenty-eight square kilometers, about 2, 117,625 people reside there. Havana also has the most tourists in all of Cuba. Havana attracts around one million tourists throughout a calendar year. By the end of 2010, Havana had about 1,176,625 tourists visit the city. Havana receives most of its tourists in the winter season from December to April.
Cuba’s economic growth comes mainly comes from Cuba’s foreign affairs with trade imported and exported to and from Europe. Cuba has been under and embargo with The United States of America since 1962 because Prime Minister Fidel Castro Ruz wouldn’t comply with the rules of America. Not only did he not follow rules, Prime Minister Fidel Castro Ruz had many different ideas on trade and how Cuba would be associated with The United States of America. As a result of his defiance, Cuba and The United States of America have gone decades without trading with one another. Over the course of Cuba’s long history, it has positively affected many over countries’ economies. However, Cuba’s own economy has yet to become and remain stable.
Cuba’s culture originated from European roots. “Afrocubanismo, the syncretic result of the African majority’s culture and that of the dominant European minority, was the ‘conceptual framework of modern Cuban culture.’ (Unknown, 1) Afrocubanismo is a mix between African and European cultures combined with a few American components. “First of these roots is that of the aborigine inhabitants; their ethnic contribution was reduced by the impact of the conquest and colonization process. It is for this reason that the more significant roots in the Cuban nationality are Spanish and African. The first was the result of migration from the metropolis, which has been going on throughout our history more or less regularly.
During the first centuries, after conquest, most groups came from Castile mainly from Southern of Spain. Later, massive migration arrived from Canary Islands, Galicia and Catalonia. More recently and during the last century Eastern European and Chinese immigrants have further enriched, what is, the unique racial mix that makes up Cuba today” (cuban-culture.com, 1). For the past century, Cuba has been full of festivals and cultural traditions showing the variety in the island. In Cuba, many children play futból (soccer), as their favorite pastime.
In 1492, a man named Christopher Columbus landed on an unknown island currently known as Cuba. Columbus was attempting to sail to India on a new route, but he ended up invading and inhabiting an island. Not long after, Columbus and his crew discovered that this island was not India and that it was a whole new world that he and his people were previously unexposed to. He and his crew tried to adapt to this new world, but the foreign diseases ended up killing them because they were not immune to them. Spain later colonized the island in the sixteenth century under Spanish rule. Then in 1959 Fidel Castro led a revolution in Cuba.
Unlike one would think, Castro did not bring freedom to Cuba, but instead he self-proclaimed himself dictator. Castro brought in a new, unknown way of ruling know as repressive Communist regime.as a result of this new ruling, all independent labor unions were proclaimed illegal and all political dissent was crushed. However, history proves socialism does not function and work. Due to this, from around 1960 to 1970, Cuba’s economy stagnated. Meanwhile Cuba became a member of the Soviet Union. Many people tried to stay away from Communism. Many Cubans escaped to the United States of America. Many more died trying. Many people drowned trying to cross the ninety miles from Cuba the Florida Keys or Florida. Meanwhile relations with the United States of American continued deteriorating and in 1961, 1,400 Cuban emigres, trained by the CIA were sent to invade Cuba. They landed at the Bay of Pigs but by the end of the invasion the mission was a total failure. In 1962 the United States of America imposed a blockade on Cuba. Furthermore, Cuba became was economically dependent on the USSR (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics).
Cuba was under the rule Fidel Castro Ruz from 1959 to 2008. According to A & E Television Network, “Castro and 81 other men sailed on the yacht “Granma” to the eastern coast of Cuba, where government forces immediately ambushed them. The estimated 18 survivors, including Castro, his brother Raúl and Guevara, fled deep into the Sierra Maestra Mountains in southeastern Cuba with virtually no weapons or supplies. According to Castro, the revolutionaries started reorganizing with only two rifles. But by early 1957 they were already attracting recruits and winning small battles against Rural Guard patrols. “We’d take out the men in front, attack the center, and then ambush the rear when it started retreating, in the terrain we’d chosen,” Castro said in his spoken autobiography. In 1958, Batista tried to snuff out the uprising with a massive offensive, complete with air force bombers and naval offshore units. The guerrillas held their ground, launched a counterattack and wrested control from Batista on January 1, 1959. Castro arrived in Havana a week later and soon took over as prime minister.” (History.com, 1)
Traffic laws in Cuba are extremely different from those in the United States of America. U.S. citizen drivers involved in traffic accidents that result in the death or injury of any party may be held criminally liable, regardless of fault. Six U.S. citizens are currently serving prison terms in Cuba for vehicular homicide, including one for a single-car accident that resulted in the death of the driver’s family-member passenger. The U.S. Interests Section recommends extreme caution when driving in Cuba as hazardous road conditions, poor signage, and jaywalking pedestrians may result in accidents The Cuban government has strict laws prohibiting the importation of weapons. The Department of State advises any and all citizens of bringing weaponry and or ammunition into Cuba, due to it being illegal even if the weapon or ammunition is brought into Cuba unintentionally. The Cuban government strongly enforces laws against weaponry and ammunition, especially at airports, seaports. All luggage is scanned with a n x-ray before entering. United States citizens entering Cuba with a weapon or ammunition, even accidentally, are subject to fines or even possibly can get imprisoned.
Cuba does not have a military, although, it does have a set of armed forces. “MINFAR is located in Havana. Its national bureaucratic structure is headed by Minister of the Revolutionary Armed Forces and has three principal groupings: The Office of the Ministry and the units that report directly to it; the General Staff and its components; and seven national commands whose chiefs are usually Deputy Ministers.” (globalsecurity.org, 1) This is similar in comparison to The United States of America’s three branches of government. “The major troop command organizations – the Isle of Youth Military Region, the Western, Central and Eastern Armies – are directly subordinate to the First Deputy Minister, Chief of the General Staff.” (globalsecurity.org, 1) This is much like The United States Department of War. “In addition to its own forces, the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces has jurisdiction over the organization, weapons and combat training and, in emergency situations, over deployment of military units in MININT.” (globalsecurity.org, 1) The only way for people to be involved and possibly have access to military weapons is by the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces saying so.
The army, navy, and air force each have a general staff under the control of the Joint General Staff. “The Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces (MINFAR) directs, executes and controls the preparation of the country for the defense; the national defense; the preparation and accomplishment of the armed warfare and the supplying with material military.” (globalsecurity.org, 1) They make sure the citizens are prepared for what is to come, how to stay safe, and make sure they know the procedures that each person needs to follow. “It is the organization in charge of directing, executing and controlling the application of the policy of the State and the Government as far as the preparation of the country for the defense; the defense of the sovereignty of the State mainly the national territory, including the territorial sea and the airspace that on these extends; the preparation and accomplishment of the armed warfare; and the hiring, acquisition, production and use of the material military that satisfies the necessities with the defense. It fulfills those obligations with the economic participation of the other organs and state organisms, organizations, social institutions and the citizens.” (globalsecurity.org, 1)
The U.S.-Cuba relationship has been extremely negative since 1959, due to Fidel Castro Ruz overthrowing a U.S regime in Havana and becoming allied with the Soviet Union. During the half century that followed, The United States of America has created an abundance of laws and way to isolate Cuba politically, and economically. Cuba is the placeholder of the longest sanction place of The United States of America. Presidents Barack Obama and Raul Castro got together and resolved their issues and restored Cuba’s roles in The United States of America. When President Donald J. was elected as president, he undid most of the things the President Barak Obama and his Administration worked so hard to achieve. Not only that, President Donald Trump J. is predicted to continue cutting ties between them. Cuba is expected to continue their procedures and way of law under President Miguel Diaz-Canel, who took over ruling of Raul Castro in April 2018.
Relations between Cuba and The United States of America is not very positive. Cuba is a more underdeveloped nation in need of many key components in the citizen’s daily lives. Cuba has very limited resources and goods, so when there is a crisis or natural disaster the severely affects Cuba, the United States of America must support the whole nation. Although Cuba does have a negative effect on The United States of America, it also has some positive components. Cuba’s industries produce products. Also, Markos Kounalakis believes, “This beautiful island nation struggles with basic goods, has no easily available internet, and could use a lot of plaster and a good paint job. The furthest thing from this news-controlled, social-media-free, communist-rundown country is the sense that it plays any geopolitical role.” Not only does Cuba struggle with maintaining itself, it also does not support America in political elements.
The Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962 was the closest the world has ever come to nuclear war. The crisis was a major confrontation between the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. The confrontation was caused by the Soviets putting missiles in Cuba, just 90 miles off the coast of the United States of America. The world was in the hands of President John F. Kennedy and Premier Nikita Khruchchev. These two men would have to reach a compromise or else the results would be fatal. During the cold war John F. Kennedy and the Soviet premier met to discuss the was between the east and west but they resolved nothing and Khrushchev left thinking that Kennedy was a weak leader. Kennedy was informed the the missiles that very same day and his advisors told him that they wanted an air strike followed by an invasion put up in Cuba.
Kennedy knew that if the US invaded the Soviets would use their missiles. On one of the following days, Kennedy asked if the Air Force could take out all of the missiles in Cuba. The Air Force then told the President that with that process there would be 10-20,000 civilian casualties. Kennedy then decided to set up a blockade around Cuba. US ships prepared for a quarantine. The press then learned about the nuclear missles and questioned them about it, the President asked the reporters not to reveal the news so he could announce it to the American people on TV. The Soviets had instrustion to launch the missiles within minutes of Kennedy’s speech. After Castro listened to the President’s speech he moblized all of Cuba’s military forces.
Overall, Cuba and its history are unique, however the nation suffers financially and politically. The nation struggles, but still had a very important role in the inhabitance of The United States of America.
