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Homework Help: Social Studies: Geography: North & Central America: Cuba
by Alex Tiffany
I. INTRODUCTION
Cuba, largest and most western island of the West Indies. It forms, with various adjacent islands, the Republic of Cuba. Cuba occupies a central location between North and South America and lies on the lanes of sea travel to all countries bounded by the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. For most of its history, Cuba's fertile soil and abundant sugar and tobacco production made it the wealthiest island of the Caribbean.
The Republic of Cuba is an archipelago, or group of islands. The main island of Cuba covers 105,006 sq km (40,543 sq mi). It is 1,199 km (745 mi) long and 200 km (124 mi) across its widest and 35 km (22 mi) across its narrowest points. The next largest island, Isla de la Juventud, or the Isle of Youth (formerly known as the Isle of Pines), off Cuba's southwest shore, covers 3,056 sq km (1,180 sq mi). Four sets of smaller archipelagosÑthe Sabana, the Colorados, the Jardines de la Reina, and the Canarreos archipelagosÑand numerous other islands are part of the Cuban nation. Havana is the capital city with a population of 2,184,990 in 1996. In 2001 the nation's population was estimated to be 11,184,023.
Cuba's proximity to Haiti, the United States, Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, and Jamaica has allowed people to migrate easily onto and off of the island. This movement contributed to the rich mixture of people and customs in Cuba and throughout the Caribbean area. Although agriculturally rich, Cuba exports only a few products, such as sugar, tobacco, citrus fruits, and several manufactured products.
Cuba's rich soil, abundant harbors, and mineral reserves have enticed foreign powers such as Spain, the United States, and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) to use Cuba for their own interests. For 400 years Cuba was a colony of Spain. Spain's conquistadores (Spanish for ÒconquerorsÓ) launched their invasion of Mexico and South America from the island. In the mid-19th century, the Cuban people formed an independence movement, decades after most of Spain's other colonies had become independent. By 1868 Cubans began to fight the first of three wars of independence. In 1898 the United States entered the war against Spain and declared Cuba independent but under the protection of the United States.
In 1902 Cubans began to rule themselves, although U.S. influence remained strong on the island. Throughout most of the first half of the 20th century, the government functioned under a series of corrupt presidents and dictators. Beginning in 1934 army officer Fulgencio Batista y Zald’var governed either directly or indirectly as a military strong man, a civilian president, and a military dictator. By the mid-1950s many Cubans opposed the corruption and political repression that developed under Batista's dictatorship. Opposition to Batista developed into a revolt known as the Cuban Revolution.
In 1959 Fidel Castro and a number of other revolutionaries overthrew the Batista government. Since that time Castro has been the head of state and the ultimate authority on all policy decisions. In the 1960s Castro split with the United States and became an ally of the USSR, then the world's leading Communist nation. In 1961 Castro formally embraced Marxism, the political philosophy that forms the basis for Communism.
Marxist theory states that capitalism and the middle-class society it supported would be replaced by a society in which the working class would enjoy the same material wealth and political power as the middle and upper classes. To achieve this goal, nations had to pass through a period of socialism in which a powerful central government would represent the interests of the working class. A centrally controlled economy would replace private enterprise, and the state would guarantee health care, education, retirement, child care, and employment.
Cuba adopted the form of Marxism that had been practiced up to that time in the USSR, where a highly organized Communist Party controlled the government. Cuba has since been governed according to socialist economic and political principles, with a centralized economy and a government under the control of the Cuban Communist Party. Under socialism, individual freedoms were sacrificed for the social advancement of all Cubans. In addition, religion was discouraged, although not forbidden, so that the allegiance of citizens would belong solely to the state. However, Cuban socialism could not and did not directly mimic the Soviet model because Cuban history and culture were entirely different from Eastern European nations and cultures. Governing offices and agencies were similar, but Castro personally retained ultimate control over the Communist Party, all governing bodies, and the military.
II. LAND AND RESOURCES
Three-quarters of Cuba's land area is fertile, rolling country consisting of plains and basins with sufficient naturally occurring water to allow for intensive cultivation. The soil mostly consists of red clay with some sand and limestone hills. Cuba is unique among the Caribbean islands because so much of its land area is arable and accessible to harbors. The access to harbors enables Cubans to transport agricultural products easily to foreign markets.
Cuba has three major mountain ranges. In the west the Sierra de los îrganos range rises to the height of 800 m (2,500 ft) above sea level. In the south central region, the Sierra de Trinidad, or the Escambray mountains, tower 1,150 m (3,800 ft) above sea level and overlook the colonial city of Trinidad. In the east, Cuba's tallest mountains, the Sierra Maestras, topped by Real de Turquino peak at 2,005 m (6,578 ft) above sea level, soar from the Caribbean's Windward Passage, the strip of water that separates Cuba and Haiti.
Cuba has several other prominent mountains and hills. Lying north of the Sierra Maestras are the Baracoa Highlands, which climb to 1,230 m (4,050 ft) above sea level. In the far western end of the island are large, haystack-shaped eruptions called mogotes in Spanish. These unique hills form the Sierra de los îrganos, which rise steeply from flat, lush valleys to heights of more than 300 m (1,000 ft).
Cuba's 3,740-km (2,320-mi) coastline has deep harbors, coral islands, and white, sandy beaches to the north. On the southern shore are coral islands, reefs, and swamps. The largest harbors are Havana, Matanzas, Cienfuegos, Nuevitas, Guant‡namo, and Santiago de Cuba. Since the arrival of European explorers in 1492, Cuba's harbors have served transatlantic fleets in trade, ship repair, and naval defense.
A. Rivers and Lakes
Of Cuba's 200 rivers, only 2 are navigable. The Cauto, located in the southeast and 240 km (150 mi) long, provides only 120 km (75 mi) of transport waterway. The Sagua la Grande, in central Cuba, is large enough to provide hydroelectric power and is navigable for short stretches. Several waterfalls throughout the island provide small amounts of hydroelectric power. The rest of the rivers are small and shallow, but several are internationally known for their trophy-sized fish.
B. Plant and Animal Life
Cuba has a wide variety of tropical vegetation. Cuba's varied climates enable over 3,000 species of tropical fruits and flowers to inhabit the island. Extensive tracts of land in the eastern portion of the island are heavily forested. The most predominant species of trees are palms, of which Cuba has more than 30 types, including royal palms. Other indigenous plants are mahogany, ebony, lignum vitae, cottonwood, logwood, rosewood, cedar pine, majagua, granadilla, jagŸey, tobacco, papaya trees, and the ceiba, which is the national tree.
Only two land mammals, the hutia, or cane rat, and the solenodon, a rare insectivore that resembles a rat, are known to be indigenous. The island has numerous bats and nearly 300 species of birds, including the vulture, wild turkey, quail, finch, gull, macaw, parakeet, and hummingbird. Among the few reptiles are tortoises, caimans, and a species of boa that can attain a length of 3.7 m (12 ft). More than 700 species of fish and crustaceans are found in Cuban waters. Notable among these are land crabs, sharks, garfish, robalo, ronco, eel, mangua, and tuna. Numerous species of insects exist. Of these, the most harmful are the chigoe, a type of flea, and the Anopheles mosquito, bearer of the malaria parasite.
C. Natural Resources
The land and climate of Cuba favor agriculture, and some 33 percent of the land is cultivated. Only about one-sixth of the island is still forested. The country also has significant mineral reserves. The nickel mines located in northeastern Cuba are the most important reserves, along with deposits of chrome, copper, iron, and manganese. Reserves of sulfur, cobalt, pyrites, gypsum, asbestos, petroleum, salt, sand, clay, and limestone are also exploited. All subsurface deposits are the property of the government.
D. Climate
Cuba's geographical expanse and the varieties of mountain ranges, savannas, caves, swamps, beaches, and tropical rain forests produce microclimates, small regions that exhibit differing temperatures, rainfalls, soil conditions, wildlife, and vegetation. The climate of Cuba is semitropical, the mean annual temperature being 25¡C (77¡F).
E. Environmental Issues
Some of Cuba's natural resources are in danger of extinction. Over the years, Cuba has exported sugarcane as its main commodity. As a result, sugarcane has replaced natural flora and fauna. For example, over 30 different kinds of bananas grew on the island before 1959, but most of the banana trees have been replaced by sugarcane. Cuba experiences little air pollution because sea breezes move airborne pollution off the island. The island's crops and animals have been affected by pests and diseases introduced from abroad, particularly the blue mold fungus and swine flu. Coastal pollution and excessive hunting also present severe threats to wildlife populations.
Although Cuba was once almost entirely forested, by the late 1950s only 14 percent of the country remained under forest cover. As a result of reforestation efforts, this figure had risen to 16.8 percent by 1995. Reforestation efforts are still under way. Deforestation and agriculture contribute to soil erosion, another environmental challenge in Cuba. Agriculture is vital to Cuba's economy. Cuba's integrated pest management program, an alternative to pesticide use, has made environmental gains while maintaining agricultural output and reducing costs.
III. PEOPLE
The Cuban population grew slowly and consistently throughout the 20th century, reaching an estimated 11,184,023 in 2001. However, population growth was affected by emigration that occurred intensively between 1959 and 1964, when about 1 million Cubans left following the Cuban Revolution. The early flood of emigrants belonged largely to the professional classes. As a result, the revolutionary government was left with the task of filling their positions with recent graduates from socialist schools and with foreign advisers. Subsequent waves of emigrants belonged to all levels of professions, from the least powerful to high-ranking officers. In 1980 the government allowed another 120,000 Cubans to depart. Since 1994 the U.S. State Department and Castro's Foreign Ministry have agreed to allow 20,000 Cubans to emigrate to the United States per year.
Since 1959 Cuba's birth rate has slowed, partially due to the availability of contraceptives and abortion. The death rate has also declined due to improved health facilities and their distribution throughout the island. In 1999, 77 percent of the population was urban, concentrating in the capital, Havana (2,184,990 people, 1996 estimate), and in Santiago de Cuba (432,396 people, 1996 estimate).
A. Ethnic Groups and Languages
The Spanish conquest eliminated the indigenous people in Cuba but introduced African slaves from the Congo, Guinea, and Nigeria. In the 19th century, Chinese laborers joined the working class. In the 20th century immigrants from the United States, Spain, and the USSR added to the ethnic mix. Today about two-fifths of Cuba's population is made up of whites, and one-tenth is black. However, many people who record themselves as white have mixed ancestry. Almost all of the people are native born. Since 1959 racial distinctions have blurred as the Castro government has worked to eliminate race and class prejudices.
The official language is Spanish, but immigration has left pockets of Haitians and Jamaicans in Cuba who speak French patois and creole English (hybrid languages created by the mixture of European and African languages). Both English and Russian are spoken and understood in major cities.
B. Social Structure
Prior to 1959, Cuba had sharp class divisions. The largest class was the peasants, who could barely support their families on the small plots of land they farmed. At the opposite end of the social scale was the handful of sugar mill owners, who enjoyed all the advantages of great wealth. Unlike most other Latin American countries, however, Cuba had a substantial middle class of lawyers, doctors, social workers, and other professionals. Industrial workers organized into very active unions, and they had a higher living standard than many workers in other Latin American countries. There was also a large group of fairly prosperous colonos, sharecroppers and tenant farmers, who grew sugarcane for the large mills under government protection. While Cuba's social hierarchy allowed for some racial fluidity, the vast numbers of poor and uneducated people were people of color. Among these, the poorest were women of color.
Under Castro's government, class divisions and social differentiations, such as elite education and membership in country clubs, disappeared. More equitable salaries, guaranteed housing, nationalized medicine and education, and employment for all leveled the social and economic hierarchy formed between 1902 and 1958. In protest, middle- and upper-class professionals left Cuba in large numbers between 1959 and 1962, which hastened the advent of a more socially level society. For instance, the income gap between peasants and urban workers narrowed as the government controlled wages and prices, and rationed commodities. After 1959, the highest-paid professionals, such as medical doctors who both practiced medicine and taught in universities, earned around 750 pesos per month, while unskilled laborers earned around 100 pesos per month. Prior to the revolution, successful sugar and tobacco growers were millionaires, while workers in their fields barely earned 160 pesos per month, and female domestic servants earned under half that amount.
However, the revolution did not eradicate all forms of privilege. Under the Castro government, people involved in the government, military, and the Communist Party formed a new privileged group. Although their salaries were maintained at a moderate level, they had access to better hospitals, homes, cars, and commodities.
Cuba's success in creating a more even distribution of wealth became skewed when the government briefly loosened economic restrictions during the late 1970s. They loosened restrictions again in the 1990s when the government reintroduced small private enterprises and individual access to the U.S. dollar, which previously had been illegal in Cuba. In the 1990s differences in wealth were more noticeable than before, as some Cubans could purchase a wide variety of goods at special stores that accepted only dollars. Luxury items were also more accessible to citizens with dollars.
C. Religion
It is difficult to accurately assess religious affiliation and political ideology in Cuba. Before the revolution, Cuba was a predominantly Roman Catholic nation, although a fairly sizeable proportion were Roman Catholic in name alone and no longer practiced their religion regularly. The revolutionary government has vacillated on religion's official position in Cuba. Beginning in the 1960s, the government harshly condemned and deported many Catholic officials. The government rarely gave attractive career appointments or promotions to Catholics who continued attending church. In addition, the government often imprisoned and imposed social sanctions on those Catholics who actively opposed government policy on religious matters.
During the 1980s, however, the government's position changed somewhat, allowing the faithful to worship without penalty. In 1998, at the invitation of Castro, Pope John Paul II paid a four-day visit to Cuba. During his trip, the Pope encouraged the spread of Christianity. He challenged Marxist ideology as the dominant belief system in Cuba by encouraging people to put their faith in Catholicism and not in secular ideology.
A significant portion of the population, including some who profess Catholicism and others who are high officials of the government, practice Santer’a, a mixture of Catholicism and African religions. The Castro government has attempted to accommodate this religion, allowing Santer’a priests, known as babalaos, to hold parades and sell their predictions to foreigners in designated temples. Many Cubans see no conflict in being a Catholic, a believer in Santer’a, and a Marxist. About half of the population professes no religious faith, officially classifying themselves as Marxists.
D. Education
The government controls the educational system and provides education for essentially all Cuban children. School attendance is compulsory for children ages 6 through 16, and Cuba has one of the highest literacy rates in the world, claiming 100 percent adult literacy, compared to only 54 percent in 1952. Estimates are that virtually all eligible children attend the first six years of school.
Castro's government attempted to narrow the gap between the educated and uneducated by allowing all children to attend school free of charge and by sending literacy brigades throughout the country during the early 1960s. These brigades, composed of teachers and trained students, taught reading and writing to Cubans in remote regions of the country that previously had no schools. As a result of their work, Cuba's literacy rate increased dramatically.
Adults may attend basic education courses. High-level courses are offered to college graduates in specialty majors such as business, medicine, nursing, and technical engineering. Membership in the Young Communist League or the Cuban Communist Party is an important determinant of student enrollment in one of the three universities and the dozens of polytechnic schools. The University of Havana is the preeminent university, but the University of Santa Clara and the University of Santiago de Cuba are also highly regarded.
The curriculum in primary and secondary schools is based upon Marxist-Leninist principles that honor collective work and that identify capitalism as an opposing world organization. Instruction on public health, elementary education, cooking, moral standards, and revolutionary loyalty are transmitted through television and radio. These programs are strictly controlled by the Cuban Communist Party and are used to communicate national, international, and political information.
E. Health and Social Services
The quality of Cuban medical services was highly esteemed before 1959, but the majority of the population was limited in receiving services. Since then the government has extended health services throughout the island using polyclinics in neighborhoods and hospitals for treatment of serious injuries and illnesses. Health education is communicated in school and through the media. Sophisticated medical procedures are not available to everyone, leaving those who know important officials in better positions to receive advanced care than those without such connections.
From 1959 to 1989 medical care was good as evidenced by the low infant morality rate (about 8.1 per 1,000 live births) and the high life expectancy (about 75.7 years, up from 59.4 years in 1955). These trends have continued into the 21st century, although medicines have been in short supply since the USSR broke up. In addition, a trade embargo imposed by the United States on Cuba since the early 1960s has made receiving medicines difficult. The social security system provides for retirement, work disabilities, unemployment compensation, maternity care, and child-care centers.
F. Way of Life
Prior to 1959 Cuba had a weak democratic political system, a capitalist economy dependent on trade with the United States, and a nominally Catholic society. The revolution replaced those traditions with socialist values, including a strong central government with indirect citizen participation in policy decisions, a centrally controlled economy, and a secular society that discouraged the practice of religion.
Since 1959 families have been both aided and hindered by revolutionary provisions and demands. In 1975 the Family Code described the roles of each family member, maintaining that whether a couple were married or not, parents are obliged to support their children. No child is considered illegitimate. Men and women are mutually responsible for the maintenance of the home. Gender and racial discrimination is illegal, although individual prejudices continue, and male dominance remains a tradition that has been hard to change.
For the first 30 years after the revolution, all Cubans who wanted to work were able to do so. Women who remained at home with families were not considered as revolutionary as those who worked, since making an extra effort to produce commodities for economic development in addition to maintaining a home and caring for a family was seen as evidence of revolutionary loyalty. Children of working couples could attend day-care centers of generally high quality. Women were guaranteed a living wage whether they worked or not, so they did not have to remain married out of financial considerations. The divorce rate soared to more than 50 percent by 1980, and it was estimated at 60 percent in 1997.
After 1990, when Soviet aid sharply declined, shortages of fuel and consumer goods altered daily work patterns. Transportation was difficult at best and at times impossible. The black market, in which items are sold illegally to bypass government controls, provided necessary subsistence products no longer available through government rationing or in the local stores. Often one member of a family devoted his or her time to resolving problems of food, clothing, and extremely scarce luxury items.
The government made some policy changes in an attempt to relieve economic hardships. Since 1994 food shortages have been resolved by permitting paladares, in-house restaurants, to serve the paying public. Farmers' markets, in which small farmers sold food for profit, opened to bring scarce produce into the cities. The government also allowed small private businesses, such as bicycle repair shops, beauty salons, and car repair. However, it was reluctant to allow the widespread development of private businesses. To cut down on the explosion of private enterprises, the government began a harsh taxation system, and it required that every business produce bills of sale for all items acquired to run the business. As a result, most of these businesses have closed or opted to operate illegally.
Cuba attempted to address a number of its needs through mini brigades of citizens offering voluntary labor. Volunteer construction teams erected public buildings and took care of the sanitation system when regular workers were overburdened. People from all sectors of societyÑmanagers as well as common laborersÑshared in the heavy physical work required to build and maintain the industrial and agricultural infrastructure. Voluntary work was intended both to construct more buildings and to elicit respect in the population for all manners of work, including manual labor. However, these mini brigades were not enough. For example, they were unable to construct enough residential buildings in urban and rural areas to meet the housing demands that emerged throughout the revolutionary period.
Public entertainment is open to everyone except when it is reserved for foreigners in special areas set aside for tourism. Cubans are avid sports enthusiasts, especially for baseball, track and field events, volleyball, basketball, and swimming. Athletic fields are open to everyone, but few Cubans have the equipment required for play. Children often play baseball with sticks and rocks. Musical groups of all quality levels travel the island playing for people in urban and rural settings.
IV. CULTURE
The Cuban people began articulating nationalist ideas in literature, art, and music during the 19th century. European colonists in Cuba did not develop an independent culture earlier because the island was only a shipping and military outpost and not a great administrative or mining center during the Spanish Empire. Early Cuban authors of importance, such as 19th century writers Mar’a de las Mercedes Santa Cruz y Montalvo, better known as La Condesa de Merl’n, and Gertrudis G—mez de Avellaneda, lived and wrote in Spain rather than in their homeland. The influences of the French Revolution (1789-1799) and the American Revolution (1775-1783) awoke Cubans to the possibilities of social and economic change, and stimulated intellectuals to become involved in nationalist and independence movements.
Homework Help: Social Studies: Geography: North & Central America
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