Book Review
Title: Cuba
Publisher: Random House - 2000
Author Ann Louise Bardach captivates an audience with poise
and authenticity through the prism of a wrecked vessel and the least expected
survivor and lead actor Elian Gonzalez. Like the investigative A&E television
program City Confidential the plot is riveting in topography, villains and
victims yet departs on interpretation of decency which is largely ascribed to
political ideology, social experiences and geography.
The book revisits causation surrounding a failed and
unauthorized attempt by two families and friends to travel the Florida Straits
by boat to American prosperity. It accurately dissects each individual and
contributes a descriptive tale of affection, comradeship and personal desires
as the bedrock of this adventure that ran amuck. The story is relived by
shipmates Arianne Horta and her boyfriend Nivaldo Fernandez but eclipsed by the
emergence of the 6 year old boy and orchestrated by his handlers, grand uncle
Lazaro Gonzalez, his uncle’s daughter Marisleysis, congresswoman Ileana
Ros-Lehtinen, the Cuban American National Foundation (CANF) and the extended
Cuban-American community in Southern Florida .
Bardach uniquely hones her craft articulating the utilization
of paternity to exasperate antagonistic flames towards the Cuban establishment.
Central to this discussion is the role of the CANF, its founder Jorge Mas
Canosa and Washington in alliances of ill repute unveiled by participants and
techniques of a questionable nature employed to dislodge the Castro
administration. The illustrious and ruthless leader of the Cuban government in
exile who is incriminated by associates for countless encounters with known
felons most notably drug dealers Rafael de Arce and Antonio Canaves and Bay of
Pigs operative Luis Posada Carriles is quoted as saying, “We will never forget
our friends and will always remember our enemies” and therefore unwaveringly
thwarts an exchange of ideas on transition in Cuba.
Regrettably disparaging battles of admonishment were waged
unsparingly against fellow Cuban-Americans who defied the odds in Miami as the
foundation’s overwhelming power silenced many, permeated the airwaves and even
the White House and the national legislature where it bore the rare distinctions
of influencing American foreign policy with presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.
Bush, William Clinton and George W. Bush and congressional representatives
Robert Menendez, Robert Torricelli and company. Hence ironically the deportment
of the accusers unmistakably embodies hypocrisy as malignant deficiencies of
intolerance are hallmarks shared with their Caribbean
adversaries.
Not to be overshadowed by philosophical assertions is also
revelation of family connections between members of the Cuban leadership in South Florida and Havana
Balanced assessments incorporate precision in analysis of Cuba
A tapestry of Castro’s life relays an ambivalent relationship
with family members, a disdain for the status quo, and efforts to micro- manage
marriage simultaneously with application to political protest. Unsurprisingly
despite age and the passage of time the polarizing commander in chief vocalizes
with zest socialism, its accomplishments, shortcomings, the US
The writer artistically interweaves politics as an
overarching theme in explicating the characteristics of the underworld and its
links to government. Accounts provided by Posada charged the CIA as a covert instrument
of recruitment and training for clandestine outfits namely the Junta
Revolutionaria Cubana, the Cuban Representation in Exile and the Commandos of
the United Revolutionary Organizations aimed at destabilizing Havana and aired
his dubious past with Orlando Bosch a convicted terrorist and former governor
of the province of Las Villas.
An extended network also engulfed Latin American safe havens
and/or launching pads such as Argentina, Mexico, El Salvador, Panama and
Venezuela, and surrogates Hernan Ricardo and Freddy Lugo, the accomplices of the
1976 Air Cubana bombing and Frank Castro
and Felix Rodriguez among others. Moreover in light of shifting currents in Grenada Nicaragua Cuba
Following a crescendo that embroiled local fanfare and a
fiasco fueled by the media, courts, defense attorneys and politicians the
pronouncement of justice was met with a possibility for reflection. With the loss
of political leverage and Elian’s return to his homeland the text reveals a
political fallout and disintegration staged by Team Florida
The once cohesive CANF displayed signs of fragmentation. Nonetheless
an appeal for moderation aligned with the ascension of Jorge Mas Santos, the
son of the late Mas Canosa was subject to reproach from former affiliates Radio
Marti and Radio Mambi accompanied by personalities the likes of Ninoska
Perez-Castellon, Alberto Hernandez and Jose Antonio Llamas and isolation by
congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen’s former campaign manager and recent governor Jeb
Bush. Further as anticipated the democratic party and particularly Janet Reno
became instant targets for retaliation and later suffered humiliating losses at
the polls in 2000 and 2002 respectively. In contrast victory on the island was
punctuated with official events and rewards to the Gonzalez family. It was
indeed a repeat of David versus Goliath as Castro triumphed over his archrival.
Cuba Confidential is a “must read” for scholars and laypersons
as well. It’s thought provocative portrayal of comparable inconsistencies and
extremes prevailing on both sides of the divide beckons for reason by
moderators fixated on political identities and limited by distrust.
Leroy A. Binns Ph.D.
Adjunct Professor: The The Union Institute
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