The Narratives and Life Projects of Orientales from Cuba in Puerto Rico and Florida

Blanca Ortiz-Torres and Mario A. Rodríguez-Cancel analyze the experience of Cubans born in the eastern region of Cuba, who have migrated to Puerto Rico and the United States in the past two decades. The participants in Ortiz-Torres and Rodríguez-Cancel’s interviews usually perceived themselves as different from Cubans from other regions, especially from habaneros, and those who live in the United States. They often expressed feeling like foreigners discriminated against in their own country of origin, since their migratory process often started by moving to Havana. The theme of discrimination has been central for most of the participants in their transit from Havana to Puerto Rico and Florida. Their narratives include nostalgia for their homeland, appreciation for the welcoming response from Puerto Ricans, and the possibility of personal and professional growth. Even though some felt uprooted, their interactions with Puerto Ricans facilitated adaptation and many said they felt Puerto Rican. Ortiz-Torres and Rodríguez-Cancel point to the need for research with a larger sample, which would allow for the documentation of the particularities and subjectivities of migrants from eastern Cuba to Puerto Rico and the United States.