Synopses & Reviews
Review
"Anita Casavantes Bradford's story is compelling, even dramatic at times, and well-established in theory and data. Her perspective on children as nation-makers and nation-breakers--the politics of childhood--really adds a new and worthwhile dimension to our discussion of social processes that were as dramatic and profound as the creation of the Two Cubas - the revolutionary nation and the exile."--Silvia Pedraza, University of Michigan
Review
"The role of children in the revolution and counter-revolution is a highly complex and controversial subject that has been treated very lightly in the existing literature. Casavantes Bradford makes a significant contribution to the field of Cuban studies by taking on subjects long considered taboo or off limits due to their politically charged contents. As the author shows, the political uses and misuses of children by the revolutionary government, the exile community, and the Catholic church, as well as the reality of racism in Miami and Havana, were factors in the development of post-1959 Cuba, and her insights in this regard make a valuable contribution to the scholarship on twentieth-century Cuban nationalism."-- Felix Masud-Piloto, DePaul University
Synopsis
Since 1959, the Cuban revolutionary government has proudly proclaimed that "the revolution is for the children." Many Cuban Americans reject this claim, asserting that they chose exile in the United States to protect their children from the evils of "Castro-communism." Anita Casavantes Bradford's analysis of the pivotal years between the Revolution's triumph and the 1962 Missile Crisis uncovers how and when children were first pressed into political service by ideologically opposed Cuban communities on both sides of the Florida Straits.
About the Author
Anita Casavantes Bradford is assistant professor of history and Chicano/Latino studies at the University of California, Irvine.