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Eddie Park
Sabatino Mangini
English Comp 1
December 16th, 2014
I-Search Proposal
Our last assignment of my fall semester English class is to perform an I-search paper. We
are meant to take a debatable topic; research it, break it down, and ponder. In the past Ive
always had trouble with debates as I tend to take both sides in and see the validity of each so it
became hard to find a topic I felt was truly worth debating; I tend to play Devils advocate a lot.
Eventually I came to find what Id say was the perfect topic for me: The Cuban Trade Embargo.
All of my life I was aware the Embargo existed, I was aware that it cut off Cuba from us, I
wasnt however aware of why it was there and why after so long it remained.
With the recent increase in communication between the Communist State and our own I
figured it was time I learned what the deal was. I began my research back in the 1960s with the
start of the Embargo, I learned of Fidel Castro and Cuban ties to the Soviet Union. From there I
learned of the Cuban Missile Crises and the act it played during the Cold War. I followed the
timeline through the years watching interactions between our two countries as well as the worlds
opinion on the matter.
Considering I knew so little, I hadnt much of an opinion beyond let bygones be
bygones but I soon found that the said bygones hadnt truly gone by. In my research I came to
modern day where Fidel has died and his Brother Raul has taken control; still communist, still
cut off. I started to search for contrasting opinions on the matter; what good has the embargo
done if any? Does this 1960s relic still hold its relevance? What reasons are there to lift the
embargo; What reasons are there to keep it? I found valid arguments on each side and seldom
discovered contradictions in information. I wanted to know what all the bickering was about and
I guess I found out, but now the question rises; the embargo; to be or not to be?

Eddie Park
Sabatino Mangini

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English Comp 1
December 16th, 2014
I-Search Process
I began with Google to find the history of the Cuban/American Trade Embargo. The idea
for my topic came from a NY Times Room for Debate post but I didnt read beyond the title
until after I had my own information and opinion. I jumped from the embargo to Castro and his
regime searching through political review sites and historical archives to learn of the past. From
the history of the past I came to the present scanning current news media for the recent actions of
Cuba as well as its ongoing relationship status with the U.S..
In a series of notepads and empty Word documents I began to compile bits and pieces of
information needed to construct a viewpoint on the matter. I discovered much bias within certain
news media, for or against the embargo and began to take their points into consideration. I found
that the majority of the world (within the U.N.) disagrees with the embargo. Ive also come to
terms with the fact that the U.S. appears both stubborn as well as persistent. Despite the negative
response we held strong to our decision to box out Cuba and refused to sucome to the peer
pressure of the rest of the world.
It wasnt until I had the history that I wrote the background on the embargo, and it wasnt
until I knew the stand points that I constructed my paper. My process became about me knowing,
not a paper I had to write for an English Course. I set out to discover, and thats just what Ive
done.

Eddie Park
Sabatino Mangini
English Comp 1
December 16th, 2014
Cuba and the U.S. Sitting in a Tree

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E-M-B-A-R-G-O
The U.S. and Cuba have had a cloudy past over the last half century and to this day
concessions to end the hostilities have not been fully made. Beyond political stances against
Cuba much of the American population has an opinion on the matter; whether it be for or against
the re-connection of these once co-prosperous countries. The highest point of debate stems back
to the start of the disagreements with a trade embargo that cut off Cuba from the U.S., but that
was fifty years ago. Does the trade embargo of Cuba by the U.S. still hold its relevance or is it
just an outdated historical fossil? Before researching this topic, I knew little of the debate, so Im
learning the facts as I go; this papers more for me than anyone else, for anyone whos remained
oblivious to this matter. In this paper Im going to explore the history of the United States
relationship with Cuba,. From there, I will explore and question the reasons to lift, as well as
keep, the trade embargo that has separated the countries for half a century. To understand the
debate one must know the history; one must know each side.
In 1962, America almost entirely cut ties with Cuba through a trade embargo; with
attempts to sway the communist state into a democracy it was thought that cutting off needed
supplies would cause them to fold, lo and behold it did not. The reason for this embargo, after so
many years of symbiotic partnership between the two countries, had been Fidel Castro. Castro
had overthrown the US backed Cuban President, Fulgencio Batista, and turned Cuba into the first
communist state in the western hemisphere in 1958. One of America's prime concerns about the
predicament was having a Soviet ally so close to home while the Cold War (47-91) was still
going on so President Eisenhower signed a partial trade embargo, initially to prevent the
transference of weapons, that would grow to be the one we have today. Through the years many
American presidents altered and amended the embargo. The conditions set forth by America,
lastly Bush Sr, for lifting this embargo included Cuba transitioning to Democracy by removing
Castros power and for better Human rights to be implemented.
Fifty years after the embargo began and it still holds strong. Fidel Castro stepped down
from his role as president in 2008 and died in 2011 leaving the country with his younger brother
Raul Castro. Since Fidel Castro stepped down and Barack Obama took office some tension has
been relieved though a decent amount of bad blood still remains (CFR/ProsCons). Much of this
bad blood comes from the case of Alan Gross, a U.S. subcontractor who went to Cuba to deliver
equipment for communications (laptops/cellphones/internet access) and was imprisoned after

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Castro's regime believed he was attempting to destabilize their government (CFR). The U.S. also
holds various Cuban prisoners who made attempts to spy on U.S. military facilities.
Cuba remains on the U.S. State Department's list of terrorism; though no evidence
supports the claim currently it has remained there for 23 years, (CFR). Cuba is also still a
Communist state as there is only one political party and has been in power for 50 years. Raul
Castro has begun to push the country in a direction to strengthen its international standing
through economic reforms and lifting travel restrictions while President Obama has been
working with him to clear the air through raising travel bans and strengthening foreign relations.
It is highly debated whether or not to raise this embargo; there are many points for and against it
and thus I explored.
Lift the Embargo:
Those U.S. citizens who believe the embargo should be lifted tend to stick to a general
list of reasons. These reasons commonly being: the embargos time has passed; its unnecessarily
expensive; its ineffective, unsupported, and targets the wrong people. How true is all this?
Since the embargo was imposed over half a century ago it is said to be outdateed, this is
because the reasons behind it have become non-existent and thus lost its merit (the Cold-War/the
Soviet Union). The embargo is also costing the U.S. money and holding back the Cuban
economy, this could be potentially changed through reinstating trade and travel. Austin Tymin of
Harvard Political Review states that Americas losses from the embargo add up to as much as
$1.2 billion annually, John Spina, an advocate for social-libertarian governments, wrote an
article for ForceChange.com considering that lifting the embargo would kickstart Cubas
economy through tourism and American investment, raising the living standards of
impoverished Cubans and, at the same time, sections of the American economy. I believe the
lack of involvement from Cubas closest, largest neighbor has absolutely stunted their ability for
growth; raising the embargo can only help them and the U.S. (namely Florida) financially and
socially.
The embargo is seen as ineffective to many as the Cuban Government hasnt budged on
its politics and human rights, it seems stubborn for the U.S. to keep it up and reflects poorly on
America. Its apparent this this cold-shoulder plan of action has done more bad than good, yet
the U.S. has stuck to its guns either out of pride or ignorance. Reuters, an international news
agency, posted an article about how over the years the United Nations have urged the U.S. to end

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the embargo; its reached its 23rd time. Each vote the U.N. takes on the matter of the embargo
comes to a similar conclusion; almost all of the other countries vote for it to end except for the
U.S. and our ally, Israel. At the U.N. podium Cubas Foreign Minister appealed to the U.S. for
change stating the embargo has caused great harm to the people of Cuba and caused cumulative
economic damage amounting to more than $1 trillion.(Reuters) Considering how the rest of the
world feels towards the ordeal, and Cuba in whole, it seems as though the U.S. has a deep seated
grudge. As stated by Austin Tymins (HPR) the Cuban embargo seems like an outdated way to
punish Fidel Castro when in actuality, the Cuban people are being punished. With all of the
restrictions towards Cuba its been left with no room to grow democratically with the majority of
the world, so to many it makes sense that this metaphorical dome put around them has kept them
in the same state, the simple addition of trade and travel could be all Cuba needs to get its act
together. Castro sits high on his dictator-seat while his people are forced to stand dumbfounded
as the U.S. holds its grudge, nothing changes for the man in control. The embargos even given
Castro's Regime an excuse for its failures so why not remove it and make it take responsibility.
With the weight of the blame onto Cubas governing force maybe the pressure will force change
which would help the Cuban citizens, Cuban-Americans, and Americans by relieving tensions.
Keep the Embargo:
Those U.S. citizens who preach to keep the embargo hang onto reasons such as: Cuba
doesnt deserve the embargo to be lifted as it hasnt made any concession to human rights; lifting
the ban would undermine those working for democracy; Cuba is a money pit that will only suck
the U.S. in; and lifting the embargo will do no good for the Cuban people.
Cuba holds strong to its repression of free speech, association, and assembly. Human
Rights Watch, an independent organization that fights for and follows human rights, summarizes
Cuban government's repressive acts on their website. After mentioning Cubas relaxation toward
travel restrictions HRW goes on to mention the repressive nature that still remains saying
Officials employ a range of tactics to punish [...] and instill fear in the public,including beatings,
public acts of shaming, termination of employment, and threats of long-term imprisonment. The
crimes against human rights that Cuba has failed to answer to violate the terms put forth by the
U.S. government required to end the embargo; Cuba also remains a communist state along with
these acts, defying another term. Carlos Montaner, Cuban Columnist and author, believes that for
these reasons Cuba doesnt deserve normal diplomatic relations. In a post made for NY Times

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Room for Debate Montaner mentions that Cuba constantly undermines the U.S. and shows no
remorse for its acts against humanity. Montaner goes on to consider that raising the embargo
would put the hard work of Cuban democrats and reformists, attempting to change their country,
to shame (I.E. submitting to the kid on the playground who refuses to admit he did anything
wrong as its less frustrating/easier to go along with him rather convince him otherwise. The
wordfolding comes to mind)
In an article posted to USNews.com George Benitez speaks of how no good could come
of liftng the embargo, Benitez states that ending the embargo would be bad business, strengthen
an oppressive government and abandon American values. (USNews) Castro's regime; Cubas
government; owes billions of dollars to various countries. The credit level of cuba, used to get
supplies on loan, is one of the lowest out their. Benitez speaks of how Cuba in many cases
refuses to pay these debts. A quote from Benitez article explains Cubas monetary
untrustworthiness, he explains that loans (from the U.S.) are what would be necessary to
normalize relations with Cuba(USNews) thus we only serve to be screwed over considering
their past.
In 1986, Cuba defaulted on its multibillion dollar debt to the Paris Club of nations. That
debt is now estimated to be around $37 billion and the Castro government refuses to pay
it. A couple of months ago, Russia had to write off 90 percent of Cuba's $32 billion debt.
Thats almost $29 billion dollars that Castro will never pay back to Moscow. (USNews)
Lastly Benitez mentions that over the years any money that has gone into Cuba has only lined
Castros pockets; even the outside pay of workers goes through the government. Described by the
Brooking Foundation (philanthropy) in Benitez article, outside firms paying Cuban workers pay
in hard currency ($/ ) and is then converted into local currency and in that conversion over 90
percent of the wage payment disappears (USNews) its thought raising the embargo would only
allow more money into the dictatorships hands. To some U.S. citizens the risk outweighs the
reward in the matter of lifting the embargo; so why take the risk.
Just Me:
Its hard to say for sure where I stand as there are so many variables; on one side we can
go with selfish but safe and avoid relations as we have for the last half century or we can appeal
to humanity and the Cuban public and open up; pushing democracy by example instead of force.

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I believe one can jump into a pool and regret it, but to ease in, then you know what you're
getting into. Granted this hesitation can hinder results and one may never fully jump into the
pool after testing the water but in this case I think its better to be safe than sorry. On the other
hand, while it may be smarter to be safe if the U.S dives in we can start making progress now as
opposed to putting off aid for years in the name of caution. I believe the embargo must go. I feel
dropping the embargo entirely at one time wouldnt be smart as I feel weve trapped Cuba within
this 1960s mindset and it will take time to calm the waters. We need to ease Cuba back into
normalcy and if the U.S. tries to patch the relationship and it does no good, at least it tried; and
no one can be blamed for trying.
Christopher Sabatini, senior director of policy at the Americas Society, wrote a
counterpoint in the NYTimes Room for Debate entitled Democracy can not Take Root in
Isolation. Sabatini makes a point that lifting the embargo and opening relations with Cuba will
theoretically allow more trust, he says doing so will promote a greater flow of information and
independent activity that has led to political opening across the world. (NYTimes) I believe
Sabatini is correct to assume a more local helping hand may be exactly what Cuba needs to get
on its feet, living in the past gets us nowhere. Through this stubbornness and inability to
compromise (Cuba and the U.S.) we drove Cuba as deep as it is into the ground; being one of the
worlds superpowers I believe we should, to some degree, take the moral high-ground and attempt
to lead Cuba out of the outdated darkness.

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Eddie Park
Sabatino Mangini
English Comp 1
December 16th, 2014
To Ponder
Its hard to ponder on my research process as it was simply how I go about learning
things. I jump around like a kid and a dictionary with a book with words beyond his
understanding. There wasnt a part of my research that didnt work as everything I discovered
came to manifest this paper and my opinion on the subject. From this research I take away a
knowledge I never had; the issue with Cuba in whole. I never knew what to think, where to
stand, and how to begin and never had much interest as it was before my time but Ive learned
so much and I hope to watch the situation progress and ultimately resolve within my lifetime.

Should I continue to research this topic some questions I would ask would be:
1: Is there any rising knowledge of Cubas association with terrorism?

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2: Are reforms made by Raul Castro made selfishly or with his country in mind?
3: Is there anyway we can Big Brother Cuba and lead them from their financial
crises

Works Cited
"Hitting 'Restart' With Cuba." The New York Times. The New York Times, 12 Oct. 2014. Web.
04 Dec. 2014.
"Cuba Embargo - ProCon." ProCon. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Dec. 2014.
"Economic Embargo Timeline." HistoryOfCuba. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Dec. 2014.
"Reexamining the Cuban Embargo." Harvard Political Review. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Nov. 2014.
Benitez, Jorge. "Lining a Dictator's Pockets." US News. U.S.News & World Report, n.d. Web. 02
Dec. 2014.
Planas, Roque. "7 Reasons The Nonsensical Cuba Embargo Has Got To Go."The Huffington
Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 13 Feb. 2014. Web. 04 Dec. 2014.
Donath, Mirjam, and Louis Charbonneau. "For 23rd Time, U.N. Nations Urge End to U.S.
Embargo on Cuba." Reuters. N.p., 28 Oct. 2014. Web. 04 Dec. 2014.
ee, Brianna. "U.S. Cuba - Relations." Council on Foreign Relations. N.p., 26 Feb. 2014. Web. 02
Dec. 2014.
"Cuba Human Rights." Amnesty International USA. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Dec. 2014.
"Cuba." Human Rights Watch. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Dec. 2014.

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