Reported from inside Cuba by Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Andres Oppenheimer, Castro's Final Hour chronicles the dramatic events that have crippled the more-than-three-decades-old Marxist regime of Fidel Castro. From the execution of the country's most celebrated Army general in 1989 to the devastating effects of the loss of all Soviet aid, the picture Oppenheimer paints is extraordinarily detailed and engrossing, revealing a country on the brink of disaster. He uncovers Castro's never-before reported efforts to radicalize Noriega's regime in Panama, the failure of his "Zero Option" plan to restore economic stability without outside aid, and tells how, in a last ditch attempt to save the country from its dire slide, Castro's top aides pushed a plan to strip him of some of his powers. Including exclusive interviews with Soviet officials, Latin American leaders - including Daniel Ortega and Manuel Noriega - as well as the top echelon of current Cuban leadership and Fidel's dissident daughter, Alina, Castro's Final Hour is a compelling and intimate portrait of the Cuban leader, and an authoritative evaluation of what the future may hold for his country.
The first complete and comprehensive work on these important, unique programs. . . . An interesting, humane, yet tragic component of the post-1959 Cuban experience and the Cold War in general."--Antonio Benitez-Rojo, Amherst College "The ordeal began [for the children] when their parents told them they had to travel alone and that they had to keep the upcoming trip a secret. The most powerful parts of the book are their accounts. . . . Through interviews with many of the participants—the children and their parents, the coordinators of the airlift, those in the underground in Cuba and the Catholic sponsors in the United States—Triay attempts to answer many of the questions the exodus raised."--Miami Herald A stirring account of the covert effort to smuggle Cuban children into the United States in the aftermath of Fidel Castro's rise to power, Fleeing Castro brings to light the humanitarian program designed to care for the children once they arrived and the hardship and suffering endured by the families who took part in Operation Pedro Pan. From late 1960 until the October 1962 missile crisis, 14,048 unaccompanied Cuban children left their homeland, the small island suddenly at the center of the Cold War struggle. Their parents, unable to obtain visas to leave Cuba, believed a short separation would be preferable to subjecting their offspring to Castro's totalitarian Marxist state. For the children, the exodus began a prolonged and tragic ordeal--some didn’t see their parents again for years; a few never did. Until now, this chapter of the Cuban Revolution has been relatively obscure. Initially the result of an effort by James Baker, headmaster of an American school in Cuba who worked closely with the anti-Castro underground, Pedro Pan quickly came to involve the Catholic Church in Miami and, in particular, Father Bryan Walsh, who established the Cuban Children's Program, the nationwide organization that cared for those children without relatives or friends in the United States--almost half of them. The latter program, in effect until 1981, was the first to allot federal money to private agencies for child care, an action with far-reaching repercussions for U.S. social policy. Victor Andres Triay traces this story from its political and social origins in Cuba, setting it in the context of the Cold War and describing the roles of the organizations involved in Cuba and in the United States. Making use of extensive interviews with Baker, Walsh, and influential underground figures, as well as personal letters that document the fears and dreams of both the parents and the children, Triay presents this history of Pedro Pan--the largest child refugee movement ever in the Western Hemisphere--with the drama of an international thriller and the pathos of a heartbreaking family drama.
This book analyses the current situation existing in Cuba and describes in detail the real disaster caused in every aspect of Cuban life by the so-called revolution of Fidel Castro, including how it has affected the different components of Cuban society. The author gives detailed summary of the main indicators of the Cuban economy and society before 1959, when Fidel Castro took power, indicating how they compared favorably at that time with other countries of the world, including many which are considered part of the developed world in our days. The book demystifies numerous aspects of Castro's propaganda that his followers have considered as great achievements of his government and puts them in perspective in regard to what Cuba could have had nowadays if it had been ruled by democratically elected governments. The book profusely documents the system of corruption and privilege established in the island and analyses the obscure role of Castro in a number of important events related to the United States, including references to his links with drug traffic, money laundry and the promotion of terrorism activities, among other criminal activities. One of the aspects the book describes in more detail is the lack of political freedom and the repression of independent thinking and free expression existing in the island, which is part of the overall control on everybody's life established by Castro, which is implemented by a gigantic machinery of terror and survelliance. The book describes the role of Cuban military and intelligence in numerous important events of world politics during the past five decades, including their role in Africa, Latin America and other regions of the world and it includes some questioning about the possible role of Castro in the assassination of President John F. Kennedy It considers Castro's interpretation of foreign policy and the way he has disregarded all norms of international behavior. The book also discusses the case of the enormous debt accumulated by Castro's government and how many of these resources have been deviated to well camouflaged foreign accounts and investments by Castro and some of the top people around him. One of the interesting things about this book is the analysis it makes about the situation of youth, women and blacks within the present Cuban society and the detailed description about how the people in general live and how this has evolved under Castro's tyranny.It also includes an analysis of the exiled Cuban community. Andres Solares discusses the real facts behind Castro's long tenure of power and shows the contradictions between what he and his supporters say and the crude reality of what happens in Cuba. His book also enters in details about the degrees of decomposition existing at all levels of the political establishment of this obsolete communist regime. The book describes the enormous damage caused by Castro's policies to the environment of the island and the state of destruction of all the main networks of services, as well as the stagnant conditions of the economy. It includes the author's views on the different possible scenarios for Cuban political future, once Castro and his brother, one way or another, are no longer able to control Cuba. This book is a strong denounce of the longest dictatorship that has existed in America and it serves as an eye opener for all those who ignore the crude reality of what happens in that beutiful country. It is also a moral message of hope for a better future for the Cuban people. Mr.Solares has used his professional and personal experience, together with his direct knowledge of the Cuban society and economy, to give us a very intersting account of the situation in his country, which will serve those who read it to comprehend better what we can expect there.
Our Father...So goeth the Motley Crue song that inspired this theme. Saint. Is it Crue? Is it the Man in Black, Johnny Cash? Is it a movie with Val? Maybe it's a perfect storm combination of all of the above. The Saint theme issue from Ricky's Back Yard contains off the punk goodness that you come to expect from the magazine with a small twist. This Saint packs a punch--namely to Cancer. In fact, all profit goes directly to a cancer charity.
Raul Villamia's childhood in Cuba revolved around baseball and bloodshed. The violence that he witnessed led him to support Castro's revolution, and his brother Mario introduced him to Castro's 26th of July Movement (M267). Minor league baseball brought him to the United States, where he hoped to pursue a career in the majors, and left Villamia uniquely placed to aid Castro's revolution from abroad. From Tampa, New York City, Bridgeport, Union City, Miami, and Key West, the Villamias, Angel Perez-Vidal, Howard K. Davis and others supported Castro through fundraising, collecting supplies for the revolutionaries, propaganda campaigns, and arms smuggling. Raul rubbed elbows with Castro and his top men and with American gangsters who did business in Cuba. He was hounded by the FBI, and his brother Mario is mentioned in the Warren Commission Report. This memoir recalls Villamia's experience as an advocate for Castro in the United States and tells the story of those in America whose efforts helped to oust Batista.
Tales and poems with a light theme addressed to a public of any abstract or age. Three tales accompanied by three poems dance to the compass of proses and verses, to the celebration joins the style of region of a country. From this conformation the work is born: 33 Y UN BURNED. Tales, poems and something more.
This book analyzes the current situation existing in Cuba and describes in detail the real disaster caused in every aspect of Cuban life by the so-called revolution of Fidel Castro, including how it has affected the different components of Cuban society. The author gives a detailed summary of the main indicators of the Cuban economy and society before 1959, when Fidel Castro took power, indicating how they compared favorably at that time with other countries of the world, including many which are considered part of the developed world in our days. The book demystifies numerous aspects of Castro ́s propaganda that his followers have considered as great achievements of his government and puts them in perspective in regard to what Cuba could have had nowadays if it had been ruled by democratically elected governments. The book profusely documents the system of corruption and privilege established in the island and analyzes the obscure role of Castro in a number of important events related to the United States—including references to his links with drug trafficking, money laundering, and the promotion of terrorist activities, among other criminal activities. One of the aspects the book describes in more detail is the lack of political freedom and the repression of independent thinking and free expression existing in the island, which is part of the overall control on everybody ́s lives established by Castro, which is implemented by a gigantic machinery of terror and surveillance. The book describes the role of Cuban military and intelligence in numerous important events of world politics during the past five decades, including their role in Africa, Latin America, and other regions of the world, and it includes some questioning about the possible role of Castro in the assassination of President John F. Kennedy It considers Castro ́s interpretation of foreign policy and the way he has disregarded all norms of international behavior. The book also discusses the case of the enormous debt accumulated by Castro ́s government and how many of these resources have been deviated to well-camouflaged foreign accounts and investments by Castro and some of the top people around him. One of the interesting things about this book is the analysis it makes about the situation of youth, women, and blacks within the present Cuban society and the detailed description about how the people in general live and how this has evolved under Castro ́s tyranny. It also includes an analysis of the exiled Cuban community. Andres Solares discusses the real facts behind Castro ́s long tenure of power and shows the contradictions between what he and his supporters say and the crude reality of what happens in Cuba. His book also enters in details about the degrees of decomposition existing at all levels of the political establishment of this obsolete communist regime. The book describes the enormous damage caused by Castro ́s policies to the environment of the island and the state of destruction of all the main networks of services, as well as the stagnant conditions of the economy. It includes the author ́s views on the different possible scenarios for Cuban political future, once Castro and his brother, one way or another, are no longer able to control Cuba. This book is a strong denouncement of the longest dictatorship that has existed in America, and it serves as an eye-opener for all those who ignore the crude reality of what happens in that beautiful country. It is also a moral message of hope for a better future for the Cuban people. Mr. Solares has used his professional and personal experience, together with his direct knowledge of the Cuban society and economy, to give us a very interesting account of the situation in his country, which will serve those who read it to comprehend better what we can expect there.
Reported from inside Cuba by Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Andres Oppenheimer, Castro's Final Hour chronicles the dramatic events that have crippled the more-than-three-decades-old Marxist regime of Fidel Castro. From the execution of the country's most celebrated Army general in 1989 to the devastating effects of the loss of all Soviet aid, the picture Oppenheimer paints is extraordinarily detailed and engrossing, revealing a country on the brink of disaster. He uncovers Castro's never-before reported efforts to radicalize Noriega's regime in Panama, the failure of his "Zero Option" plan to restore economic stability without outside aid, and tells how, in a last ditch attempt to save the country from its dire slide, Castro's top aides pushed a plan to strip him of some of his powers. Including exclusive interviews with Soviet officials, Latin American leaders - including Daniel Ortega and Manuel Noriega - as well as the top echelon of current Cuban leadership and Fidel's dissident daughter, Alina, Castro's Final Hour is a compelling and intimate portrait of the Cuban leader, and an authoritative evaluation of what the future may hold for his country.
Throughout history, wars have shown the coldest part of the human being, it has led them to greed, evil, and the desire to oppress the weakest. How many lives were thrown into oblivion? How much pain will these separations from loved ones have caused?This is a short story inspired by some real events that took place between 1879 and 1884, when Chile and Peru were protagonists of the very famous and well-known Pacific War.Miguel is a young man, eager to become a great soldier at the service of the country. Yet I never imagined how cruel and ruthless war could be. Together with his wife Tadea, and his father Don Antonio, they will look for the exit, without understanding that, by that time, all the doors will be closed.
These short stories describe some real murders that occurred in Peru. Some of which are still in the investigation phase, and others in the judicial phase.It represents a series that will be published month by month, according to how the events arise.These murders had such an impact on Peruvian society that until now people live in fear, due to the coldness and harshness with which the murderers acted.In many cases, society still waits for justice to be done, but corruption, and lack of ethics, are also a "big stone in the shoe", which prevents the formation of an equitable and suitable society.I invite you to read it, and from its critical point. Thank you very much!
Trutie's photographs, most of them never before seen, capture everything - the Revolution's soldiers and firing squads, President John F. Kennedy's 1962 address in Miami to Cuban exiles, and Brigade 2506, the liberation army that sought to overthrow Castro. These images vividly document the inner life of a revolution with candid images of rebels dining together, jeeps moving through rustic, muddy camps, and Fidel Castro and Ernesto "Che" Guevara walking side by side in a reflective moment. Trutie's camera also sees the tragic side of revolutionary activity - burning sugar mills, jungle hospitals, and corpses with pockets turned inside out, lying in open graves. These raw, unfiltered photos, combined with the narrative text of Teo A. Babun and noted Cuban-American historian Victor Triay, offer a one-of-a-kind, intimate eyewitness account of the Cuban Revolution as it unfolded."--BOOK JACKET.
Abstract: The perceptions of stakeholders within a school community regarding student attendance are indicative of the critical importance of attending school, particularly in the early grades, as it relates to social and academic growth. Different forms of research and practice when exploring the factors that affect school attendance may help identify challenges that impede equity in education. This case study allowed African American parents/guardians and school leaders to use their voice to address the importance of school attendance and advocate for their students who encounter issues with chronic absenteeism and its effect on their academic achievement and behavior. The portraiture methodology used to develop a narrative and story for each participant centered on their perceptions of student attendance and chronic absenteeism. Their perceptions were then interpreted and discussed through the theoretical lens of critical race theory. In addition to interviews, this research utilized observations and document analysis to explore the stakeholders' perceptions of attendance and absenteeism at a predominantly African American elementary school in an urban area of Southern California.
Florida Historical Society Samuel Proctor Award From the interviews: "My [pregnant] wife once asked me, ‘How is it possible you are not thinking of your child?’ I told her, ‘It is precisely because of that child and the two others I have here that I am going. I plan to return to my fatherland, and I don’t want a Communist homeland.’"-- Jorge Marquet "One of the sad things that has happened over this period in the history of Cuba is that historians have not given credit to the idealism of those who turned against the revolution. We were really full of good will and wanted to make Cuba better."--Eduardo Zayas-Bazán "[A] feeling of duty to defend our faith was what motivated my husband . . . . What made me give my blessing to his activities were my own feelings of duty."-- Myrna Pardo Millán (widowed by the invasion) This is the story of the Bay of Pigs invasion, told for the first time in the words of the idealistic participants who came together in April 1961 to overthrow Fidel Castro’s dictatorship. Most of the approximately 1,500 men of Brigade 2506 were captured by Castro’s forces in Cuban swamps and jailed until December 1962. About 114 died. Combining oral history and traditional narrative form, Victor Triay tells us who individual members of the brigade were and what they fought for. As one veteran, only eighteen at the time of the invasion, recalls, “It was my turn to do something for Cuba. Probably the purest thing I have ever done in my life was to make the decision to go.” Triay describes the volunteers’ recruitment, training, combat experience, and the wretched months of their imprisonment. He also presents the women they left behind, including three who were widowed by the invasion. Among the nearly 2 million people in the U.S. Cuban community today, the freedom fighters who made up Brigade 2506 have always been accorded the highest level of respect. Bay of Pigs tells the personal stories of the invasion in an account that restores the human dimension to a pivotal moment in the history of the Cold War.
American Association for State and Local History Leadership in History Award in Local History - Honorable Mention Florida Book Awards, Gold Medal for Florida Nonfiction Set against the sweeping backdrop of one of the most dramatic refugee crises of the twentieth century, The Mariel Boatlift presents the stories of Cuban immigrants to the United States who overcame frightening circumstances to build new lives for themselves and flourish in their adopted country. Award-winning historian Victor Triay portrays the repressive climate in Cuba as the democratic promises of Fidel Castro’s 1959 revolution gave way to a communist dictatorship under which the people of the island became virtually cut off from the outside world. He illustrates how escalating internal tensions during the regime’s second decade in power culminated in an exodus of over 125,000 Cuban refugees across the Straits of Florida during the spring and summer of 1980. Alongside a fast-paced narrative offering a brief history of the Mariel Boatlift, Triay presents testimonies from former Mariel refugees who recall their lives in Cuba before the boatlift and how they longed to reunite with family members who lived in exile in the United States. Their captivating stories detail the physical and psychological abuse they endured in Cuba at the hands of pro-government mobs and the mistreatment many experienced at processing centers there before reaching the port of Mariel. They recall treacherous journeys to Key West aboard vessels that were deliberately overcrowded to life-threatening levels by Cuban authorities, as well as their experiences settling in Miami and beyond. Called the scum—escoria—of society by the Cuban government, a false portrayal accepted and spread by some in the American media, Mariel refugees faced extraordinary challenges upon entering U.S. society. Yet, despite the obstacles placed before them, the overwhelming majority of these immigrants successfully transitioned to their new lives as Americans and many have emerged as leading professionals, scholars, writers, artists, and businesspeople. This book shares their hardships and successes while profoundly illustrating the human impact of international power struggles.
Cuba, 1961. Democratic activists have launched a full-scale insurgency against the emerging Communist dictatorship of Fidel Castro. Abroad, a group of Cuban exiles has allied itself with the United States government and created an assault force called Brigade 2506. The Brigade's mission: invade Cuba, oust Castro, and establish democratic government on the island. By the time Brigade 2506 hits the beaches at the Bay of Pigs, it has been abandoned by its powerful ally. In the closing of The Struggle Begins, Book I of The Unbroken Circle series, three cousins, Goyo, Roberto, and Emilio, flee Cuba after nearly being arrested for conspiring against the Castro government. In Book II, Freedom Betrayed, they join Brigade 2506 and take part in the epic three-day battle that will determine the future of their homeland. The rest of their family, still in Cuba, is forced to endure the invasion's consequences and finds itself at the mercy of a full-blown totalitarian state. Its plight worsens when its two youngest members are sent out of Cuba, by themselves, as part of an airlift of Cuban refugee children. A spellbinding family saga brimming with rich characters, this true to life work of historical fiction offers readers a front row seat to one of the most heart-wrenching struggles for freedom of modern times. Author Reviews for Book I: ." . . a rare and exhilarating combination of fact and fiction, this is one hell of a page-turner that draws you in and never lets go." --Carlos Eire, Ph.D., Riggs Professor of History and Religious Studies, Yale University. Author of Waiting for Snow in Havana (National Book Award 2003) "Triay is a master at plot mechanics." --Lily Prellezo, author of Seagull One: The Amazing True Story of Brothers to the Rescue "I started reading it one afternoon and couldn't put it down until I finished." --Margaret Paris, author of Embracing America: A Cuban Exile Comes of Age. Other Reader Reviews: "The Struggle Begins" is a thrilling historical novel that cannot be put down . . ." "The characters are so real that you can almost touch them." "The Struggle Begins" is presented to the readers in a scenario that combines the reality of Cuba in 1960 with fictional characters to make a fascinating novel." "Caught right away in the drama of a Cuban family in the midst of their struggles with Castro's revolution.
Walks Through Memories of Oblivion is a collection of short stories and essays about resistance, prison, and exile; a creative nonfiction narrative based on true events; flashbacks from the former political prisoner Fernando Andres Torres once was at eighteen years of age, during the military regime that overthrew democracy and established a brutal dictatorship (1973-90) in Chile, Torres's homeland. These stories are not about politics, they are personal; the flesh and bones behind the young and restless student militant that Torres once was; there is a good game of dark humor and tales of subtle and small victories of human endurance and perseverance.
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