Statistically speaking, escaping Cuba is deadlier than escaping East Germany used to be. More Cubans die in the attempt. Well, thanks to a policy put into place by president Clinton, (and shamefully left in place) some of the lucky few who make it are now sent back.
I know, I know, we've got to control our borders, etc., illegal immigration is out of hand, etc. But just keep this in mind: none of this happened before Castro's glorious takeover. Indeed in the 50's more Americans lived in Cuba than Cubans in the U.S. As a percentage of population, Cuba took in more immigrants in the 20th century than any country in the Western hemisphere-and most of these were from Europe. People used to jump on rafts (primarily from Jamaica, Dominican Republic) trying to get INTO Cuba. People used to be as desperate to enter Cuba as they are now to escape. Escapees from Cuba to the U.S. traditionally qualified for treatment under the Refugee Relief Act passed by the Eisenhower Administration to accept refugees from the totalitarian regimes of East Germany, Czecholslovakia and Hungary. Well, Cuba still suffers from such a regime.
