Cuban migration to Miami

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Cuban immigration has greatly characterized 20th century Miami, creating what is known as "Cuban Miami". Miami is one of the United States' largest metropolitan cities, comprised of mostly foreign residents and the development in Miami continues to prefigure national trends.^[1] However, Miami reflects global trends as well, such as the growing trends of multiculturalism and multiracialism; this reflects the way in which international politics shape local communities.^[2] Essentially, the coexistence of growth and internationalization within Miami has perpetuated an ethnically driven social polarization.^[3] The growing number of Cubans in Miami remained loyal to their cultural norms, mores, customs, language, and religious affiliations. The large influx of Cuban immigrants remaining loyal to their cultures was accompanied with local fears that these immigrants would greatly change the social and cultural landscape of Miami. Essentially, Miami's residents of European descent feared that they would be ousted from their dominant position within society. The transnational force of immigration defines Miami as a growing metropolis, and the 20th century Cuban influx has greatly affected Miami's growth.^[2]

Contents 1 Why Miami? 2 Emerging notion of the "ethnic citizen" 3 Housing segregation 4 Language 5 Media 6 Rioting and social upheaval 7 In-migration, out-migration, and interregional migration 8 See also 9 References

[edit] Why Miami?

After Fidel Castro assumed power in Cuba in 1959, many Cubans emigrated in protest of the communist regime. Many of these immigrants chose Miami as their new home. As a result, Miami gained a certain magnetism to future Cuban immigrants wishing to settle in a land other than Cuba. "The so-called Golden Exiles of the early 1960s" comprised the first wave of Cuban immigrants to Miami.^[4] These refugees predominantly set out to secure and serve their ethnic group within Miami. Essentially, "this eased the absorption and accommodation of subsequent, less highly selected waves of Cuban refugees, including the large influx of immigrants during the 1980 Mariel Boatlift".^[4] The 1980 Mariel Boatlift illegally transported approximately 120,000 Cubans into Florida, the majority of which settled within Miami-Dade County.^[5] Cuban immigrants further perpetuated Cuban migration through the emergence of a materialistic culture in Miami. "The bulk of Miami's many immigrants came here in order to advance themselves economically. This is also true for the Cuban community, which was driven to prove Castro wrong by building their own economic success story".^[3] This form of materialism acted to further attract Cuban immigrants to Miami. “Although direct emigration from Cuba ceased in 1973, movement of Cubans to Miami from elsewhere in the United States, a growing emigration from other Latin American nations, and higher than city average birth rates among the Latin Americans already resident in the county, have meant that the population continues to increase”.^[5]

[edit] Emerging notion of the "ethnic citizen"

With growing Cuban migration to Miami, ethnicity has reached the forefront of political and social discourse. Increasingly, the notion of an ethnic citizen has become prevalent in 20th century Miami. With the segregation of Cubans from Miami's white and black communities, it has become easier to attach ethnic labels to Cubans. Furthermore, the appeal to ethnicity has often mobilized ethnic groups within Miami. "The term "ethnic citizen" is intended to flag the disquietude that the transformation of immigrants into ethnics since the 1960s poses for the many Americans who find references to ethnicity troubling and dangerous. Miami … increasingly defines citizenship in ethnic terms. This does not mean that individual and group behavior is determined solely or even predominantly by membership in an ethnic community, but that the progressive globalization in … Miami-Dade County tends to highlight differences between and among groups".^[2]

The notion of the ethnic citizen is further perpetuated by the news and media within Miami because they attach ethnic categorizations to isolated events. This creates feelings of alienation and vulnerability on an individual basis within larger ethnic communities. This often leads one to a life of crime and anti-social behavior which constricts assimilation. "Ethnic participation in criminal activities is as old as the establishment of the first ethnic communities in nineteenth-century cities. The search for security behind walled and gated communities in Miami … affects directly the nature of civil discourse in democratic societies. The globalization of the drug trade, immigrant smuggling, and money laundering are defining characteristics of many of the cities' poorest neighborhoods".^[2]

Thus, a major challenge that Miami faces is to create social institutions that are inclusive and that counter-act the notion of ethnic alienation and discrimination.

[edit] Housing segregation

With the influx of Cuban immigrants into Miami-Dade County, there was increased residential competition and segregation. Cubans have migrated to Miami in large numbers since 1950, and the majority of these immigrants had middle class backgrounds. Essentially, this propelled their economic assimilation and prosperity. However, these 20th century Cuban immigrants have not become residentially assimilated with the non-Latin population ^[6]. "Instead, through invasion and succession they are creating their own ethnic ghettoes … typical of ethnic minorities who have recently arrived in United States cities, the Miami Latin population was highly centralized; 70 percent lived within a three mile semi-circle on the western side of the city's [central business district]”.^[6] As a result, Miami's non-Latin populations (which includes Jewish and Black populations) has become increasingly polarized in a geographic sense. Essentially, the vast impact of Cuban migration has greatly affected Miami's non-Latin populations.

As Cubans began to arrive in large numbers the number of residents within the average household grew, and single unit homes became multiple units. Furthermore, many houses were removed to make way for the building of apartment structures. "Zoning restrictions, however, regulated the conversion of homes to multiple unit dwellings as well as the construction of new apartment houses, preventing a precipitous rise in the density of population. In addition, urban renewal in the inner city converted much land from residential to other uses”.^[6]

[edit] Language

With the emerging importance of ethnicity and the increased effects of segregation, Cubans within Miami attempted to reassert the Spanish language. In Miami, the Spanish language was spoken to a larger extent than in other cities with large Hispanic populations; also it was spoken in more diverse settings in Miami than any other city.^[2] Furthermore, the 1970 census confirmed that Miami's Spanish-speaking population was 24 percent.^[6] The Spanish language was becoming a norm in Miami as it was more extensively spoken by Miami's Cuban elite.^[2] Language became increasingly important in 20th century Miami as a result of the Cuban influx and this had impacts on other non-Latin communities.

Essentially non-Latin communities began to oppose the rise of the Spanish language as a growing force within Miami. This can be seen in the anti-bilingualism/English Only movement. This movement came about in 1980, after a long period of vast Cuban immigration and social reform. Language was becoming a pressing issue as "Miami had the first bilingual public school program in the modern period (1963) and the first English Only referendum (1980)".^[1] In fact the debates of English as Dade County's official language led to violent and dangerous riots within the 1980's.^[7] Cubans felt that by preserving their language, they were preserving a fundamental component of their culture.

[edit] Media

Although the media in Miami allows a certain amount of cultural labeling to flourish within the community, it also portrays the growing importance and domination of Cuban immigrants. For example, the Miami Herald's June 14th, 1996 headline reads "Vanishing Spanish".^[3] The headline refers to, and deplores the fact that, only a small percentage of recent high school graduates were fluent in Spanish; whereas the majority of second-generation Cuban immigrants spoke broken Spanish, and only spoke it in the home.^[3] "This was described as an alarming trend since it erodes Miami's advantage as a bilingual community and diminishes its economic competitiveness".^[3] Within 20th century Miami many Spanish-language newspapers were founded. "The Miami Herald created a Spanish-language insert, El Nuevo Herald, in 1976".^[8] This addition received a vast amount of support and "by 1981 circulation reached 83,000 on weekdays and 94,000 for weekend editions. El Nuevo Herald is now published as an independent newspaper and reports a weekday circulation of about 100,000. It too is accessible on the World Wide Web (http://www.elherald.com). As the Hispanic population has grown and achieved considerable economic success, it has also moved beyond Miami's city limits: Spanish-language newspapers are now published in adjacent Hialeah and Fort Lauderdale. This expansion can be seen at a statewide level as well, for Tampa, Orlando, and Immokalee each have Spanish-language newspapers".^[8] Essentially, through the founding and growth of distinctly Hispanic newspapers, Cuban immigrants established a distinctly Latin American media.

[edit] Rioting and social upheaval

The growing number and power of Miami's Cuban population increasingly impacted African-American communities within Miami. In fact, "countless media and public reports portray Miami in terms of a fragile truce among Hispanics, blacks, and Anglos that threatens to dissolve into a full-blown culture war".^[7]

"African American rioting erupted on four separate occasions during the 1980s in Miami. With the exception of the events following the Rodney King verdict in Los Angeles, Miami experienced the worst U.S. rioting since the 1960s when Liberty City erupted in violent protests in 1980. African Americans' non-traditional protests and civil disturbances in Miami coincided with the social upheaval attendant on the arrival of 125,000 refugees from the Cuban port of Mariel".^[2] Although the link between racial tensions and ethnicity need to be further examined, African Americans nonetheless are impacted by Cuban immigration into Miami. Cuban Americans' attachment to their culture further fuels the conflict and promote social fragmentation. Essentially, "racial tensions and periodic episodes of civil unrest in its ghettos".^[7]

[edit] In-migration, out-migration, and interregional migration

Cuban immigration greatly effected the Miami's future demographics. For example the net in-migration of African American's into Miami was reduced during the 1960s in comparison to previous years.^[6] This was the result Cuban immigrants competed for jobs that were often afforded to African Americans living in Miami. This reduction of in-migration of non-Hispanics displayed the growing power of Cubans in Miami. Miami "posts a low out-migration rate-43.6 per 1,000. This, of course, stems from the huge Cuban presence in Dade County and is testimony to the holding power of the Cuban enclave in Miami".^[9]

Furthermore, Miami receives much interregional Cuban migration. "Miami posted an in-migration of 35,776 Cubans from elsewhere in the United States between 1985 and 1990 and an out-migration of 21,231, mostly to elsewhere in Florida. Flows to and from Miami account for 52 percent of all interregional migration in the Cuban settlement system".^[9] This migration to Miami shows Miami's appeal to diverse Cuban communities. Furthermore, it greatly effects non-Hispanic communities causing them to leave Dade County.

[edit] See also

• Immigration to the United States
• El Nuevo Herald, a Spanish-language supplement to The Miami Herald

[edit] References