A decade ago, we could not have

filmed in Cuba.

Now, we can visit the country

and take in its African roots

and the prominent role of Cuban

women,

the peculiar and intriguing

role of athletics,

the widespread artistic

expression and burgeoning

economic opportunities.

An island and its society

formerly closed to people

from my country.

Ah-hah, yes.

Funding for In the

Americas with David Yetman

was provided by

Agnese Haury

♪

Funding for In the Americas

with David Yetman

was also provided by

the Guilford Fund.

♪

♪

In the Americas with

David Yetman theme

From Miami, it's about a

half hour flight to Havana.

It's only 90 miles from Key West

Havana is Cuba's capitol and by

far its largest city: a little

over 2 million people.

For us in the United States,

Cuba is a different and until

recently, forbidden world,

but that's changing.

Havana is alive with restoration

and reconstruction,

full tour buses, and taxis.

New business opportunities are

everywhere awaiting government

approval and new rules

and regulations.

But Cuba has a seemingly

endless supply of cultural and

natural treasure and the

invasion of tourists

has just begun.

♪

♪

♪

My friend, Myra García Rodríguez

is a Havanera

as Havana women are known.

She is immersed in Cuba's

culture and has seemingly

endless connections into a world

of Cuba, unknown to most

outsiders.

This place where we are now

exemplifies that which is a

fantastical reality as our

Cuban writer, Alejo Carpentier

would say.

An imaginative world that

emerged from one of the great

Cuban creators and artists

our country has produced.

His name is Fuster. Fuster

emerged in the 1990's when we

were going through a special

period.

In the early 1990's, Cuba

experienced what Cubans

now call "the special period."

Almost overnight all foreign

aid was cut off from the Eastern

block, which sent the Cuban

economy into an immediate

tailspin.

It is estimated that during that

five years the Cuban population

lost 30% of its overall weight

due to the privation brought on

by the US blockade and the end

of funding from international

sources.

People were experiencing an

extreme privation within the

community and Fuster wanted

to improve their living

conditions, to improve

their surroundings.

Since we had no material goods,

he sought instead to provide

spiritual wealth, and in that

way, improve people's lives.

Fuster creations are laden with

symbolism and what we might

call Cubanism.

If we start here on top, it

looks like a cross but it's

actually a peasant, a Cuban

peasant, symbolizing being on

the top but also the suffering

the peasants have undergone.

If we look at these various

representations, here is a whole

group of Cuban symbols.

We have the peasant and the

peasant woman exchanging

flowers, a symbol of equality.

We have the royal palm, the

symbol of Cuba, and the royal

palm on the tail of a caiman, a

member of the alligator-crocodie

family.

If you look at the island of

Cuba on a map, it looks just

like a caiman or an alligator.

The rooster standing on the

top of the caiman which is a

dangerous thing to do, is

calling everyone get up in

the morning and get to work.

We've got work to do,

let's get it done.

All of these put together is

a striking symbol of Cuba,

the work to be done and the

equality and representation

of a whole country.

Cuba has gone to great lengths

to stress its cultural roots

derived from Africa.

Our next stop is in a museum

in the heart of downtown Havana.

This is the only female

folkloric performance

company in Cuba.

It was formed with the

international folkloric group

in 1991.

And in 1994, it became an

indipendent group set by the

first women who dared

to play the bata drums.

They accompany songs and

dances of the Yoruba region

or Santeria as it is known

here in Cuba.

Yoruba, a religion, forbids

women to play the bata drums

but because of the importance

of these drums in the

development of our popular

and traditional music and

because it gives Cuban music

international significance.

We believe the role of the

drums needed to go beyond

the boundaries of the

religious practice.

The challenge was to get people

to understand the difference

between the drum playing

for religious rites and the

secular drum that is played

in orchestras.

Play almost anywhere.

What we would like is for the

world to understand that

women here are always

moving forward.

And we are ready to demonstrate

all of our potential if that is

in performance art, better still

In Cuban history, women have

been largely invisible

Cubans have tried to change

this.

One sign is a startup

transportation business,

begun, owned and operated

by women.

As in many, many countries

of the world, the bicycle is

more than a neat invention.

Here it█s a basic form of

transportation and many, many

people require bicycles to get

to work or to the store or

wherever they need to go.

This bicycle shop is private

ownership but the private

ownership is a cooperative

run by women.

We came up with the idea for

business because there are no

bike shops in Havana and I

believe this is the same for all

of Cuba.

We offer bike maintenance

and repairs.

Students and retirees pay 30%

less for services provided.

For children, their bicycles are

repaired at a 50% discount.

Others who need something

done sometimes aren't charged

anything.

We are satisfied just by

helping others.

The state sells bicycles but we

have customers who do not

want their bikes anymore and

we will help them sell their

bike.

It will be almost two years now

since we opened and it has been

very good, very productive.

Yes, we have many customers

and some of these bikes are

rental.

I'm the only one here with

bicycle experience, but the

girl who work here like the

bikes and have learned a lot.

Well, I started cycling at

12 years of age.

I became a professional cyclist.

In Cuba, being professional

means being a member of the

national team of the country.

During the special period,

there was insufficient means

Now we see cooperative ventures

between the state and

indivuduals, people who earn a

living by providing expanded

transportation services like

taxis, buses, and thee are also

classic cars cooperatives.

we, in this shop, promote

bicycles as a healthier means

of transportation.

Well to give you an example,

from Cerro, they call us by

phone and we go to their homes

to fix it on site or to bring it

back here for service.

70% of workers here are

women and 30% are men.

Traveling anywhere in Cuba,

visitors are overwhelmed by

the vintage automobiles

that serve as taxis.

It's a result of the 50-year

blockade of Cuba by the

United States.

Cubans have made the most

of a virtually complete embargo.

For many years, Cubanos have

had to be the mechanics of

our own cars.

We have not had a chance to

bring in parts from the US.

Therefore, we have had to

restore the old cars with our

own resources to keep them

running which is why they're

so valuable.

This car was a family car; it

was my uncle's, a guy who

lived on the outskirts

of the city.

He gave it to my mother in very

poor conditions and I began to

restore it six years ago.

It took me about a year to

finish the restoration.

And because of opportunities

created by the government to

open up the private sector in

Cuba, I started working as a

taxi driver with this car. And

all of the Chevy cars that I own

are from 1955 to 60.

Our company, Nostalgic Car

is divided into two parts.

The garage is operated by my

husband, Julio, and I am the

one who manages the rental

business with the state travel

agencies.

We have a group of drivers,

22 drivers also very passionate

about classic car restoration

and they keep them in good

condition.

And I give them employment

to all of them.

And each car up to four

passengers will fit and we'll

handle groups of 40, 50 people.

Sometimes, they ask me to find

up to 25 classic cars for large

groups or for individuals with a

tour guide or sometimes without

tour guides. And the drivers tae

tourists around the city and evn

to places outside of Havana, to

the most important tourist

places in the country.

You know, during the special

period we had fewer problems

than we have now because

during that time many car parts

still came from the Soviet Union

when it was still the

Soviet Union.

And many parts of those

Russian cars will work on

these cars.

At that time, there were still

things available in Cuba and

the cars had no major

problems yet.

Then we started to see more

problems that began when modern

cars arrived with more

sophisticated technology,

making it more difficult

to fix them.

Everything is original on this

restored with uh-what a treasur!

They don't make them

they like they used to.

Julio was able, has been able

to go to the US and get some

parts and bring them back

for restoration.

This mirror isn█t original but

he was able to go to the US

and find one and bring

it back and put it on.

That's the opening piece.

So, this is uh, actually a

Toyota motor, the same one

that's in a Toyota Four

Runner.

Uh, it gets much, much better

mileage; it's much more

powerful.

And the parts now are such

you don't need a computer

to work on this vehicle.

A good mechanic can work on

every single part of the

whole car.

This is a 59 Chevy Impala

convertible. There are very

few of these.

Uh but he has gotten a hold

of it and he is beginning

restoration from the bottom

very much to the top.

This seeming mess then will

be restored to a gleaming beauty

So he's got another six,

seven months of work.

The steering is not in good

condition so everything here

goes and the result

will be otro tesoro.

This is a 58 Chevy Bel Air,

90% of it is original.

Ah, ha Yes!

Uh! What a marvelous machine.

El sonido Chevrolet.

Chevrolet, yes!

So, this is the last car he

bought. It's a 60 Chevy and that

was the last time you could

import any kind of car into Cuba

from the United States or

virtually anywhere.

These are the original windows.

The guy had it in a garage

so it's in very good shape and

he agreed to sell it to Julio.

It's the original radio, 1960,

works. It's an old time radio.

They have tubes and when it

goes inside a garage, you can't

get good reception.

Here it goes. The oil light

goes off. You're ready to cruise

Cuba's intervention into

the economy extends to sports.

Just down the street from the

car shop is a very Cuban

training camp.

For over a century, boxing

has been big in Cuba.

The Olympic games are often

dominated by Cuban boxers.

The tradition continues but

what is really different is now

women boxers are

appearing in Cuba.

Since I was a child I watched

boxing on TV and I loved it.

And boxing for Cuba is to say,

well many say it's like baseball

But to me, boxing is

going for the gold.

It's like the king of sports

here in Cuba.

And when women's boxing

gets certified, it will be more

pleasurable.

I think the Cuban people will

accept women's boxing with

devotion and tremendous pride.

In fact, when I was walking down

the street like right now on the

way here, a neighbor told me

that we will approve women's

boxing, and you know, I say

of course, that will be

something fantastic.

Boxing for Cuba is everything.

We've been training female

boxers here for several months,

waiting for official approval.

Now we currently have four

women boxers training here.

We only have one that is

training today but we have

four in total.

As you can see, there is a

girl who is 56 kilos and we

have other girls competing at

41, 60 and 52 kilos.

In my opinion these girls, when

they open up boxing to women,

they have the talent to be

national champions and maybe

world and Olympic champions.

Just as we have Cuban

champions in the men's sport.

Boxers from this training camp

have been world champions

and Olympic champions.

We have a pyramid structure

here where the boys are

selected from the base,

the basic training centers.

The quality ones move upward,

hopefully arriving at the top of

the pyramid, the national team

as they get older.

Here right now, we have a world

champion, Daniel Matellón,

a world champion.

Daniel has been a student

here since childhood.

Many other champions

began their careers here.

I have never laced up a boxer's

gloves before but I think I am

pretty good at it. They

could probably hire me.

These boxers are not

professionals but they're

professionals. They're actually

government employees, it's what

they do.

Since 1957, Fidel Castro ended

professional sports here in Cuba

He wanted every Cuban to take

part in sports and the best to

become government employees

and receive their success in th█

Olympics and other places.

Oh, my gosh! These folks work

six days a week, all day

that's what they do.

So they have to be really fit.

I'm not going to take any of

them on.

Are you sure you don't want

to go out and just spend five

minutes training?

The number one sport in Cuba

is baseball but boxing is the

number two in popularity.

It's always been the case since

about 1900, there have been

these great professional Cuban

boxers before 1957 and

afterwards there have been

these remarkable amateurs.

It will be really interesting to

see what happens now with the

changes taking place.

I began boxing as a hobby.

I was the only woman who

came here to train in the gym.

But since sports in Cuba are

free, you can practice the

sport of your choice.

I was accepted here to

start my training.

To be a female boxer in a gym

where all are male, everyone

around you are guys, it is super

fantastic because you're the

center of attention.

Everyone loves you.

Everyone supports you.

Each boxer tries to teach me

a little of his technique, try

to help me, try to teach me

his style, the boxing technique.

And now more girls are starting

to box and I serve as an

inspiration to them because

I have a higher technical level,

intense desire and a graceful

style as a female boxer.

And despite my age, the young

female boxers watch me and

are inspired.

From boxing, Myra takes us

to a street gathering unlike

anything we would see in

the United States.

It's an impromptu celebration

of Cuba's African roots

through music.

We're here in the streets,

an alley called Hamels.

This is the place where the

Afro-Cuban culture breathes.

We come here to see the rumba.

The rumba is a genre of music

that is born spontaneously.

As a matter of fact, every

Sunday has become a meeting

place for rumberos.

Every Sunday, a rumba group

performs here.

The musical rhythms, chants,

themes, expressions emerge

spontaneously.

It is a meeting place for

Cubans and a way to have fun.

Along with that, we had a

chance to see incredible call

and response singing

and dancing taking place.

And drumming that is associated

with Santeria religions, popular

culture and Catholic faith.

A mixture?

A mixture, absolutely.

One thing that strikes me here

is that Cubans everywhere

acknowledge the huge importance

of African-Cuban culture

in the society.

Everywhere, they brag and

brag as they should.

But one of the last things that

Fidel Castro said when he was

leaving the presidency, he

regretted he was never able to

incorporate African-Cubans into

the higher echelons of

government and the

Communist party.

Well, it's easy to outlaw

prejudice in society but

you know there's nothing you

can do, uh, about people's

attitudes. That takes education,

it takes longer even than the

fifty years of the

Cuban revolution.

It will come, I have no doubt

about it. That there will be

a growing sense of equality

of all Cubans.

It's safe to say that in terms

of advances of people of color

in the society, Cubans could

teach the United States

a huge amount.

As the situation becomes

normalized, we are both gonna be

enriched by the opportunities

to share those values together.

Join us next time In the Americs

with me , David Yetman

Ecuador is mostly

jungle.

That's not well known by

the casual traveler

or even most Ecuadorians

since the bulk of them

live in the Western...

The Amazon has few roads

and until recently few

people besides the

Indians

who have lived there

for eons.

Things are changing.

With the influx of tourists, the

Cuban government has realized

they need to accommodate the

culinary needs of these hordes

of people now coming into Cuba.

One of the ways they have done

it is to allow for semi-private

enterprises, families to operate

semi-private restaurants. And

these restaurants are ordering

it to attract certain clientele.

This particular place is the

first place in Havana to

offer sushi.

Funding for In the

Americas with David Yetman

was provided by

Agnese Haury

Funding for In the Americas

with David Yetman

was also provided by

the Guilford Fund.

Copies of this and

other episodes

of In the Americas

with David Yetman

are available from

the Southwest Center

to order call

1-800-937-8632

Please mention the episode

number and program title

Please be sure to

visit us at intheamericas.com

or at intheamericas.org