With Elsa Civantos, a Cuban citizen who fled her country after Castro’s revolution, returning some fifty years later to observe the change. Tatiana Piterbarg interviews her grandmother.
‘What was it like growing up in Cuba?’ ‘Life was relatively ordinary – I played and went to school like a normal child. However, the political atmosphere was always very unstable and we often went from one revolution to the next. People were constantly afraid – afraid of what would happen, afraid of being shot. I remember that when I was thirteen Batista mounted a coup and at 05:00 in the morning we received a phone call from my mother’s friend saying ,“Batista is revolting. The streets are dangerous; someone might get shot. Do not leave the house”. We were always living in a state of revolution, never knowing what would happen, never knowing when a bullet was going to come our way.’
‘What was the revolution like for you?’ ‘My mother knew right away that this was the end. She said to me “If this man wins, if he succeeds in becoming the leader of this country, this is the end of our life as we know it”. As history knows to be true, Batista surrendered to Castro, and so began his rule. My family’s hardship only commenced two or three months later: our only income was from a few apartments which my mother rented out to citizens of Cuba, so when Castro announced, “Everyone owns the apartment/house where they live, no one is required to pay rent anymore”, we instantly became poor, with a total income of $0. My mother had known that Castro’s arrival was the end of our lives in Cuba, and that we would eventually have to flee, all of which proved to be correct.’
‘What were the attitudes towards the Castro brothers during the revolution?’ ‘People were excited, everyone was happy to be rid of Batista. Even we were happy for half an hour. But it didn’t last long. About a week after Castro came into power he delivered a four-hour speech to the whole of Havana. Listening to his speech, it was at this moment that I knew we were doomed. He told us “If anything happens to me you don’t have to worry. Raul is here to take my place.” And I thought “Excuse me? Aren’t there going to be elections?”, because we had all assumed that this would be a democratic government. I don’t know whether the views of others changed, but mine certainly did- I knew we were in danger.
‘Do you think that there were any benefits of the revolution?’ ‘Benefits? No. Everything that we owned we lost, every single material possession. Of course, there were benefits for the people in high command – they lead a wonderful life. The rich people became poor, the poor people stayed poor, and members of the communist party became rich. This is the truth about communism in Cuba.’
‘How did you escape?’ ‘I left very legally. My uncle had lived in the United States for 25 years so I asked him to be my guardian, which at the time was permitted. We fled only a year after Castro came to power, and as we acted so quickly, rules were not quite so strict (the situation soon worsened, though). For the first few years in Miami, I thought that the government would collapse quickly and we would all return home. Eventually, I had to give up my wish, but fifty years later some people are still hoping.’
‘What did it feel like visiting your country again after the revolution?’ ‘I cried from morning to night non-stop, it was extremely emotional. For me, it was sad to see that the city was more ugly and that the buildings were in bad shape, even though I expected it. Everything was decayed and dirtier. What really shocked me was the expensive brunches they served at the hotel, with food that Cubans were not allowed to eat, such as lobster [fishing is prohibited- all that is caught is reserved for tourists]. I couldn’t believe that they would serve so much food to tourists, whilst people in Cuba were starving.’
‘What do you think the future of Cuba holds?’ ‘That I cannot tell you. I would like to see the Castros evicted, but this is wishful thinking (I believe that they will probably remain for some time). However, new technology is exposing the Cubans to the disparity between their lives and the lives of those in the USA- the technology is opening their eyes. Unfortunately, I think that, as the first years of communism were so brutal, with so many murders committed by Che Guevara and the Castro brothers, the Cubans are too afraid to revolt.’
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