Claire Scafidi
Executive Summary
Cuba, an island only 330 miles from Miami, is suffering at the hands of the United States government through the embargo, or el bloqueo, as it is known. Given the embargo’s 66-year legacy and lack of results, some may argue that it is time for the U.S. to lessen its restrictions on Cuba’s economy and end the economic warfare. Since the Cuban Revolution in 1959, Cuba has been targeted by efforts to end the current regime, hurting Cubans in the process through shortages and energy blackouts exacerbated by the embargo. Through the embargo, the U.S. is attempting to end the current regime in Cuba via economic incentives.
History of Cuban-American Relations
The U.S. has had tense relations with Cuba since revolutionary Fidel Castro overthrew the U.S.-backed Batista regime to create a socialist state allied to the Soviet Union. The U.S. sanctioned Cuba and enacted an embargo to stimulate political change. In 1961, the CIA attempted to overthrow Castro in the failed Bay of Pigs invasion alongside Cuban exiles and revolutionary forces. The invasion resulted in Cuba taking exiles as prisoners and releasing them in exchange for food and medicine. Then, in 1962, the Cuban Missile Crisis occurred when President John. F. Kennedy demanded that the USSR remove the nuclear missiles the Soviets secretly stashed in Cuba, which resulted in the U.S. having to remove nuclear missiles from Turkey. In 1982, American President Ronald Reagan put Cuba on the list of States Sponsoring Terrorism, and it remains on this list today alongside Iran, Libya, Syria, Sudan, and North Korea. In 1996, the Helms-Burton strengthened the embargo against Cuba by putting economic pressure on Cuba by penalizing any company that does business with Cuba, restricting U.S. aid, and allowing American citizens to sue foreign companies profiting off of Cuban territory.
There are four main periods of Cuban immigration in the United States, which are essential to note. The Golden Exodus of immigration occurred from 1959 to 1962 after the Cuban Revolution and consisted primarily of immigrants who were Batista supporters, land owners, and professionals. In 1965-1973, the Freedom Flights started after Castro confiscated small businesses and lower-class Cubans fled on Pan American World Airway flights between Havana and Miami. Between April and September of 1980, 125,000 Cubans immigrated to Florida during the Mariel Boatlift, and those immigrants were referred to as Marielitos and blue-collar workers. Many Americans stereotyped the Marielitos as criminals, as Fidel Castro largely said people from jails and mental institutions were fleeing, when, in fact, that was not the case. Some Marielitos had a record, but the majority were just working class with limited education and thus were stereotyped by American media. In 1994, the Balsero Crisis occurred after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, and Castro opened the borders for anyone who wanted to leave. Cubans immigrated using homemade rafts, truck tires, and wood. In the early 1960s, the United States started Operation Pedro Pan, where 14,000 unaccompanied children immigrated to Miami from Cuba, sometimes never reuniting with their parents. The idea of the program was to save school-aged children from Fidel Castro’s regime, but instead, these Cuban children were often abandoned. Since 1990, 500,000 Cubans have immigrated to the United States.
Cuban Americans living in the U.S. are primarily anti-Castro and support attempts at ending his regime. They are concentrated in Miami-Dade County, Florida, specifically. Additionally, today, around 51% of Cuban Americans support continuing the embargo. Older generations share the belief in “squeezing out the regime.” This voting bloc is interesting to note due to their recent impact in the 2016, 2020, and 2024 elections. In 2016, 54% of Cubans voted for Donald Trump, and in 2020, most Cuban Americans identified as Republican and were the decisive vote to turn Florida red with high turnout. In the most recent 2024 election, Cuban Americans' support for Trump was at an all-time high, roughly 68%, in Miami-Dade County voting for the former president.
Recent Diplomacy: An Overview
President Barack Obama (2008-2016)
Former President Barack Obama (2008-2016) was the first American president to pursue diplomacy with Cuba since 1959. He lessened restrictions on travel and remittances, allowing Americans to visit Cuba for educational and religious reasons and authorizing Cuban Americans to send money to Cuba. After Obama reduced American restrictions, Raul Castro, brother to Fidel, started decentralizing the economy. In this case, lessening the embargo furthered the American goal of changing Cuba’s system rather than the embargo itself. In 2014, Pope Francis helped Obama and Raul broker a prisoner exchange and diplomatic relationship between the two countries. Obama hoped to open up American relations with Cuba by eventually ending the embargo and removing Cuba from the designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism.
President Donald J. Trump (2016-2020)
Former President Donald Trump (2016-2020) reversed Obama’s diplomacy policies and instead enacted further prohibitions. He renewed Cuba’s status as a State Sponsor of Terrorism in 2021, just before transferring power to Former President Joe Biden. Trump said in a speech to Miami Cubans in 2017, “Easing of restrictions on travel and trade does not help the Cuban people. They only enrich the Cuban regime.” Furthermore, Trump rolled back Obama’s lessened restrictions on travel, making it more difficult for Americans to visit the island, especially since commercial transactions contributing to the military are banned. Therefore, Americans can not stay in government-owned hotels or shop at government-owned stores, which limits options.
President Joe Biden (2020-2024)
President Joe Biden (2020-2024) reversed some of Trump’s policies by expanding authorized travel, removing the $1,000 limit on remittances, and restarting the Cuban Family Reunification Parole Program, which allows U.S. citizens to apply for parole without a migrant visa. However, the Biden Administration announced that Cuba must make further progress on human rights before additional headway can be made. While not fully returning to Obama-era policies as promised, such as creating a diplomatic relationship, President Joe Biden rolled back some of Trump’s policies, such as increasing flights and remittance allowances.
President Donald J. Trump (2024-2028)
In March of 2024, in a video posted to Truth Social, Trump alluded that he would change the regime in Cuba if elected. He claimed to stand with the Cuban people and recognize their oppression. Trump has not mentioned Cuba much in his campaign, as it is not a salient issue to the American people as the happenings in Cuba do not directly affect American life or American national interest. Cuban Americans largely support Trump, with 68% saying they would vote for him. In 2020 and 2024, Trump catered to this specific voting bloc, leading to it flipping red in 2024. Given their history with the island, Cuban-Americans in Miami typically support a harsher relationship with Cuba and against the regime. However, Trump’s immigration policies will likely affect Cubans and Cuban-Americans. Winning Miami-Dade County, which is 60% Cuban, coupled with his past administration, leads to the plausible conclusion that Trump will tighten relations. Furthermore, the Heritage Foundation, partly responsible for writing Project 2025, may influence Trump’s policies and calls for strengthening the embargo.
Current Effects of Embargo on Cuba
It may be argued that the U.S. is enacting economic warfare on Cuba. Food shortages and power blackouts of more than eight hours are ubiquitous across the island. In the last few years, Cuba has faced the worst energy shortage in its history, and over the past few months, the blackouts have increased in time. In March, smaller demonstrations against blackouts broke out. In October, blackouts left families without power for two days after Cuba’s electrical grid went out. These blackouts affect power and water supply, food supplies (which are already limited), and heat.
Additionally, the embargo has impacted Cubans’ income. The average income for a Cuban today is between $16 and $23 a month, dangerously low considering the levels of inflation and food shortages. For example, a can of powdered milk costs about $8, and for the average family, that is half of a monthly salary just for milk. Many Cubans rely on a “black market” to supply common household foods and items such as rice and shampoo, and roughly 48% of Cubans regularly go without food due to a lack of money or resources.
Recommendations
Cuba is not a state sponsoring terrorism; thus, its status should reflect such. Only four countries currently reside on the list: Cuba, North Korea, Iran, and Syria. There is no terrorist organization associated with Cuba or its government, and thus, the Cuban people should not be punished because of the United States’ prejudice against socialism. Therefore, the U.S. should remove Cuba from the list of States Sponsoring Terrorism.
Furthermore, travel restrictions should be lifted entirely, and the embargo should be lessened or ended. For countries such as Canada, Cuba is considered a hot tourist destination. It is evident that the embargo is only hurting the Cuban people both economically and socially, leading to human suffering or requiring some to immigrate. If the embargo is “successful” in ousting the Castro Regime, it will likely take years for a revolution to rise, which raises the question of what this may cost the Cuban people in the meantime. In contrast, conditions in Cuba would likely significantly improve if Cubans had access to resources and humanitarian aid outside of the island. For example, if American foreign businesses could invest in the island, the economy would improve, and Cuba would have access to new infrastructure and investment. Furthermore, the U.S. embargo prevents companies that do business in Cuba from participating in the American economy, so by lessening the embargo, Cubans would have greater access to global companies.
Conclusion
The United States and Cuba have had a long, tumultuous relationship, starting with the beginning of el bloqueo and followed by a series of harsh acts leading to mass immigration from Cuba to Miami. Former President Barack Obama’s administration changed the U.S.’s relationship with Cuba drastically for the better before President-Elect Donald Trump reversed those policies. President Joe Biden has grappled with the relationship with Cuba in the last four years. It is time for America to acknowledge and address the issue of Cuba, including the degree of human suffering involved. Recently, Cubans have suffered extreme food shortages and power blackouts, leaving families without power for multiple days. However, under President Donald Trump, relations with Cuba may get worse before they get better.
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