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Cuban Immigration After the Revolution, 1959-1973
An excerpt from a publication about the number of political prisoners in Cuba created by the Truth About Cuba Committee, April 1964.

An excerpt from a publication about the number of political prisoners in Cuba created by the Truth About Cuba Committee, April 1964.

The Truth About Cuba Committee was a non-profit organization established by Cuban exiles in Miami in 1961. Their mission was to educate Americans and fellow refugees about communist Cuba and its role in promoting communism throughout Latin America. They published bulletins and reports like this one to draw attention to the repressive activities of Castro’s government in Cuba. The first page of this publication is a map of prisons and concentration camps (described in Spanish), then the second and third pages list the numbers of men and women detained in various kinds of prisons in each Cuban province.

English translation of the text on the map:

Title: Cuba: Captive Island

"Nuestra Denuncia" box at top right:

Our Complaint

This map shows how our island has been turned into a huge political prison. The number of prisons and prisoners has been carefully ascertained by the commission for humane treatment of political prisoners in Cuba and the Cuban Commission for Human Rights.

To this we must add 108 slave labor farms operated by the "recruits" for the new Compulsory Military Service.

This graphic has been prepared under the direction of Dr. Miguel A. Olba Benito, Secretary of the Cuban Commission for Human Rights, and Advisor in this matter of the Committee of Cuban Youth Organizations in Exile."

"Sumario Cuantitivo" box at top center:

Quantitative summary of the Captivity of the Cuban people

12,000 executed on the walls

100,000 political prisoners (70,000 in prisons and jails and 30,000 in concentration camps and farms)

23 concentration camps scattered throughout the island

56 prisons and jails and 9 state, criminal farms (See the reverse of this chart, list of 99 penal farms established after the preparation of this work).

Half Million exiled Cubans

Six million Cuban slaves on Captive Island

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Citation Information
Truth About Cuba Committee, excerpt from “Cuba: Isla Cautiva,” Digital Public Library of America, https://dp.la/item/7d8cea2eeb0b647372ba7fb6ca58aef1.
Note: These citations are programmatically generated and may be incomplete.
Courtesy of University of Miami Libraries via Sunshine State Digital Network.

Tips for Students

For this source, consider:

  • the author's point of view
  • the author's purpose
  • historical context
  • audience

Item 10 of 15 in the Primary Source Set Cuban Immigration After the Revolution, 1959-1973

Previous ItemNext Item
A clip from a 1963 film, Cuba: World Verdict, produced by the US Information Agency about early responses to the 1959 Cuban Revolution.
A news clip of a Cuban official discussing his changing opinions of Fidel Castro and the Cuban Revolution, October 25, 1960.
A pamphlet entitled “Castro Admits Cuba is Communist,” published by the Truth About Cuba Committee, December 1961.
A script from a news story about four Cuban refugees in Fort Worth, Texas that aired on December 21, 1961.
A Pan American Airlines ticket for Margarita Lora, who left Cuba as part of Operation Pedro Pan in August 14, 1961.
A translated excerpt from a 2008 interview with Cuban Albertina O’Farrill who worked for refugee initiatives including Operation Pedro Pan.
A photograph of the Cuban refugee Sanz family at home in Van Nuys, California, October 2, 1962.
An excerpt from a US Senate subcommittee hearing on “Cuban Refugee Problems” with testimony from Dr. José Miró Cardona, 1961.
A speech about Cuban refugees in Miami-Dade County to the Downtown Rotary Club by Marshall Wise of the US Cuban Refugee Center, May 2, 1963.
An excerpt from a publication about the number of political prisoners in Cuba created by the Truth About Cuba Committee, April 1964.
A photograph of Cuban refugees arriving in Miami on a Freedom Flight.
A photograph of a family reuniting at a Cuban refugee camp in Miami, Florida, 1966.
A photograph of a Cuban American restaurant in Miami, Florida, 1966.
A 1969 photograph of a bust of José Martí in Union City, New Jersey.
A map titled “Fidel Castro’s 10-year Reign in Cuba,” published by the Civil Education Service, 1969.

These sets were created and reviewed by teachers. Explore resources and ideas for Using DPLA's Primary Source Sets in your classroom.

To give feedback, contact us at info@dp.la. You can also view resources for National History Day.

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