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H-NET BOOK REVIEW
Published by H-LatAm@h-net.msu.edu (January 1998)
Felix Masud-Piloto. _From Welcomed Exiles to Illegal Immigrants:
Cuban Migration to the U.S., 1959-1995_. Lanham, Md.: Rowman and
Littlefield, 1996. xxii + 168 pp. Tables, notes, bibliography,
index. $62.50 (cloth), ISBN 0-8476-8148-3; $23.95 (paper), ISBN
0-8476-8149-1.
Reviewed for H-LatAm by Robert J. Kolesar <rkolesar@jcvaxa.jcu.edu>,
John Carroll University
The Politics of Cuban Migration
Few can doubt the contemporary or historical significance of the
topic Felix Masud-Piloto addresses in this book. The book does not
attempt to discuss fully the Cuban-American community; reasonably,
the author restricts his focus to the "reasons, motivations, and
circumstances for the migration" (p. 2). First published in 1988
under the title _With Open Arms_, this revised and expanded edition
is intended primarily to trace the "evolution of and contradictions
in U.S. policy" (p. xxi) towards Cuban refugees in the post-Cold
War period.
Masud-Piloto's central arguments offer few surprises. U.S. policies
toward Cuban refugees generally have been crafted to undermine Fidel
Castro's rule by draining Cuba of skilled personnel as well as by
using the refugee flight as a symbol of the failure of Castro's
revolution. U.S. administrations presumed that refugees were leaving
for political reasons, not economic, and thus would be resident in
the United States only temporarily. The Mariel exodus of 1980
brought the first widespread awareness of the faultiness of U.S.
assumptions.
The dramatic changes in U.S. refugee policy in 1994 and 1995, when
the U.S. effectively ended its "open arms" policy, came about for
several reasons. Masud-Piloto attributes lessened interest in the
refugees to both the Soviet Union's collapse and the growth of
popular anti-immigrant sentiments within the United States. Above
all, there was a desire to prevent another Mariel. Thus the Clinton
administration cooperated with Cuban authorities to restrict the
flow of refugees even as essential policies toward Cuba (lack of
recognition, the embargo, and travel restrictions) remained much the
same.
Masud-Piloto also traces Castro's manipulation of refugees and U.S.
policies towards them. At most, migration from 1959-1980 hurt the
Cuban Revolution. It certainly did not destroy it. Even in the
earliest years, migration helped Castro consolidate his power. That
became evident even to the U.S. in 1980, when it became clear that a
wide variety of reasons motivated those who left Cuba, not simply
political opposition to Castro.
Some attempt is also made to put the Cuban migration of the last
four decades in a broader context. A brief first chapter (10 pages
of text) surveys "The United States, Cuba, and Cuban Exiles,
1868-1958," noting that political exile in Florida had a long
tradition even before 1959. Another chapter contrasts the Cuban
story with that of Haitians and Central Americans. But this chapter
suffers from dated sources. The discussion of both Haitians and
Nicaraguans ends with 1985. The final chapter, which brings the
Cuban refugee story to 1994 and 1995, does not effectively use the
comparative framework this chapter might have provided.
While the work offers a reasonable overview of its topic, it does
not offer much new material. Much of the material does not appear
to have been significantly revised for this edition. It is based
for the most part on published materials, including newspaper
reports. The author notes the lack of archival sources, not only
Cuban, but also American, due to the continuing classification of
documents in Presidential libraries.
Masud-Piloto, a refugee himself, also incorporates the "views of
family members and friends through a number of random interviews."
He does so to "provide a more direct human perspective on the
migration's effects" (p. xviii). As laudable as that intent is,
it seems misplaced in a work that primarily surveys U.S. and Cuban
policies. Much more remains to be learned of the origins and
motivations of the migrants themselves.
Copyright (c)1998 by H-Net, all rights reserved. This work
may be copied for nonprofit educational use if proper
credit is given to the author and the list. For other
permission, please contact H-Net at
H-Net@h-net.msu.edu.
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