warning Hi, we've moved to USCANNENBERGMEDIA.COM. Visit us there!

Neon Tommy - Annenberg digital news

5 Reasons Why The U.S. Should Lift The Embargo On Cuba

Syuzanna Petrosyan |
October 21, 2013 | 3:46 p.m. PDT

Executive Producer

Private food market near Havana, Cuba (Syuzanna Petrosyan, Neon Tommy)
Private food market near Havana, Cuba (Syuzanna Petrosyan, Neon Tommy)
About a year into the Cuban Revolution of 1959, with continuously failing assassination attempts on Castro’s life, the U.S. government initiated the economic embargo against Cuba. There was a three-step logic behind the embargo: damage the island’s economy, generate discontent, and thereby undermine Cuba’s revolutionary government.

After more than five decades, the U.S. needs to re-evaluate the policy and consider effective engagement with the island.

Here are a few reasons why:

1. First and foremost the embargo is not hurting the Castros but the average Cuban. While the the rich and politically-connected prosper, the majority of Cubans live with an alarming lack of basic resources such as soap and toothpaste.

2. The embargo prevents people-to-people communication, creating an environment of isolation for Cubans, especially with regards to information. Increased interaction with Americans will allow Cubans to have more access to the outside world, which would pressure the Cuban government to adjust its domestic and foreign policies.

3. The embargo fuels the Cuban government with an outside threat, which they use to create propaganda against the U.S. When referring to the embargo, academics and politicians in Cuba stress that for them the policy is similar to being in a state of war, and they are able to effectively communicate this to the population. You only have to pick out the airport windows to see the row of anti-U.S. billboards in Havana, most highlighting the depravity associated with the embargo.

4. Cuba uses the embargo to create inter- and intrahemispheric alliances against the United States. Cuba's partnership with Venezuela is in many ways an attempt to challenge American domination in the Caribbean. Furthermore, increasing trade relations with China further point towards anti-American alliances globally.

5. Lastly, U.S. policy needs to take into account the leadership change in Cuba since 2008 when Raul Castro took power. In many ways, U.S. policy has not reflected the fact that Raul is not Fidel and that his presidency has brought unprecedented changes to Cuba. Since 2011, Cubans have been experimenting with a free-market system in many sectors of the economy, which in turn have generated unintended social and political consequences that should not be overlooked by the U.S.

With a highly educated population eager to enter the era of information and with the revolutionary guard almost fully disappearing, the Cuban government will be forced to become more flexible in order to adapt to the globalized international system. The U.S., in turn, should take advantage of these transformations, lift the embargo, and shape its policies towards cooperation and engagement with Cubans.

Reach Executive Producer Syuzanna Petrosyan hereFollow her on Twitter.



 

Buzz

Craig Gillespie directed this true story about "the most daring rescue mission in the history of the U.S. Coast Guard.”

Watch USC Annenberg Media's live State of the Union recap and analysis here.