Cuban By Accident
¡Ay, Jorge!14 Helmi 2021

Cuban By Accident

By the end of January, 1959, Fidel Castro's revolutionary forces had taken over most of Havana's businesses, nationalizing private companies, stores, banks, etc., in the name of the revolution, on behalf of the Cuban people. My mom was working at a bank as the Director's executive assistant. When the takeover happened, Castro's first Finance Minister ordered that she be transferred to another department, doing so after learning of her Irish, British and Spanish roots, telling her she was "Cuban by accident!"

Although born in Havana, Rita never felt particularly Cuban. She was fluent in English early in her life, sure, but it took the force or impact of the Cuban revolution, and her subsequent exile to Miami, for her to (finally?) feel as if she was, indeed, Cuban. Listen as Rita recounts how her grandparents met -- an Irishman (and former British soldier in Burma, the cop in Chicago) and the daughter of a British man and his Spaniard wife -- and how this merging of anglos influenced her identity before arriving in the U.S. And, of course, what happened after realizing that she would never be returning to Cuba. Things get a bit heavy, so this week's "Who Would You Make a Baby With?" segment came in just in time to go out with a bit of levity. This Episode's choice: Cuban national hero José Martî (aged 30, in his philosopher-poet prime) OR #MeToo Movement-ravaged opera superstar, 80 year-old Plåcido Domingo. Listen!

Jaksot(30)

Ron DeSanctimonious' Special Midterm Elections Episode

Ron DeSanctimonious' Special Midterm Elections Episode

With the midterm elections upon us -- and Democrat control of the House and Senate imperiled -- we thought it'd be a good idea to check in on our favorite 90 year-old registered Republican living in F...

7 Marras 202235min

The Irish Aunts

The Irish Aunts

Rita had five Irish aunts. Her father’s sisters, like her father, Thomas Honan Jr., grew up under the watchful eye of the OG Irishman who’d stayed in Cuba after fighting alongside Teddy Roosevelt as a...

31 Loka 202234min

Nobody Told Her (or Maggie Chapman) - Two Cuban Girls' Arrival in the U.S.

Nobody Told Her (or Maggie Chapman) - Two Cuban Girls' Arrival in the U.S.

My mother got off the plane from Cuba in 1959, landing at LaGuardia with her best friend and one small suitcase. That suitcase contained all she was allowed to take with her out of Cuba. Except for a ...

1 Syys 202238min

Forget Cuba. But Don't Forget Bebita and Marrero!

Forget Cuba. But Don't Forget Bebita and Marrero!

Have you ever weedled your parents or one of your parents or grandparents in an attempt to get the real stories behind family lore? Well, if you’ve listened to any ¡Ay, Jorge! episodes, then you know ...

17 Heinä 202234min

El Dichoso Navarrito

El Dichoso Navarrito

Jorge's grandfather, Jose "Pepe" Navarro, aka El Dichoso, worked for 9 Cuban presidential administrations. He was all of 16 years in 1921, when a man who'd just been appointed as President Alfredo Zay...

4 Touko 202237min

Special Russian Invasion Episode: A Threesome for Peace

Special Russian Invasion Episode: A Threesome for Peace

After receiving no less than 62 emails demanding a revisiting of Season 1's 'Baby-Making' segment, Rita's hard choices return with a vengeance! Your favorite 90 year-old Cuban mom* once again drops co...

10 Maalis 202244min

Doubting Thomas Honan

Doubting Thomas Honan

Thomas Honan was born in Havana, Cuba, in 1900. He was the son of my Cuban family's patriarch, the 'OG Irishman' Thomas Patrick Honan (my maternal, great grandfather ... the one who'd emigrated from I...

6 Maalis 202241min

Liberace Afternoon: The Life and Times of Irene Zón

Liberace Afternoon: The Life and Times of Irene Zón

I remember watching the Liberace show with my grandmother and great grandmother when I was a little kid. I loved his flamboyance while my grandmother always remarked on his piano playing. In a sort of...

13 Tammi 202237min

Suosittua kategoriassa Historia

olipa-kerran-otsikko
gogin-ja-janin-maailmanhistoria
mayday-fi
huijarit
tsunami
rss-ikiuni
mystista
konginkangas
totuus-vai-salaliitto
rouva-diktaattori
sotaa-ja-historiaa-podi
rss-subjektiivinen-todistaja
rss-i-dont-like-mondays-2
rss-kirkon-ihmeellisimmat-tarinat
rss-peter-peter
rss-sattuu-sita-suomessakin
tiedetta-ja-sirkushuveja-vanhojen-aikojen-podcast
maailmanpuu
rss-antiikki-nyt
viela-yksi-sivu