the jewish community of cuba: between continuity and extinction

Transcription

THE JEWISH COMMUNITY OF CUBA:
BETWEEN CONTINUITY AND EXTINCTION
Margalit
Bejarano
The rise and subsequent decline of the Cuban Jewish community in the
twentieth century embodies a unique chapter in the study of diaspora
Jewry. Beginning with a group of U.S. Jews in a Spanish-speaking society,
home to Ladino-speaking immigrants from the Ottoman Empire, a haven for
Jews fleeing the Holocaust, witness to a mass exodus in the wake of the
Castro Revolution,
the Cuban
Jewish community today continues to
a limited Jewish communal
maintain
life under difficult conditions.
Because Cuba lacks any tradition of religious antisemitism, there is no
has taken a
reported local antisemitic feeling, even though Cuba
prominent anti-Zionist stand. Factors that threaten its disappearance as an
organized community include demographic decline due to emigration, aging
and assimilation; the lack of spiritual leadership; the poverty of Jewish
educational and cultural activities; and the hostility of the majority
society toward identification with religious institutions.
Introduction
Cuba presents the only case of a Jewish community living under a
communist regime in the Western Hemisphere.
Since perestroika and
the fall of communist governments in Eastern Europe, Cuba seems to be
in the world. Indeed,
preparing itself to be the last fortress ofMarxism
Fidel Castro portrays himself as the successor to one of Cuba's
greatest
heroes, Antonio Maceo, who refused to compromise his principles dur
ing theWar of Liberation against colonial Spain.1
Direct links between
the present regime and the fight for national
are
rooted in the revolutionary
thought that
independence
deeply
in
of
the
seeks its ideological
JoseMarti,2 and in
writings
justification
as
a
revolution.
of
continuous
Cuba's
process
Similarly,
terprets
history
one should not view the situation of Cuba's
Jewish community as a mere
counterparts, but rather as the fruit of
replica of its Eastern European
?
an encounter between former Cuban characteristics
shaped by ethnic
?
and the
historical
and
experience
setting
composition,
geographic
other
Union
the
and
Soviet
influence exercised by
factors,
political
such as hostility
towards
the U.S.
and alliance with
the PLO.
The identificationof Fidel Castro with thedoctrines ofMarxism
Leninism
was
followed
by
a mass
exodus
of upper
and middle
JewishPolitical Studies Review 3:1-2 (Spring 1991)
115
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class
116
Margalit
Bejarano
included the majority of the Jews, whose
which
community
to Florida's
to have
been
Dade
County.
transplanted
to exist, and a variety of
continued
Nevertheless,
Jewish life in Cuba
of the
social and religious institutions functioned under the auspices
has been
communist
community, however,
regime. The remaining
constantly declining in strength and number, and it struggles to survive
in an atmosphere
of political hostility towards its former sources of
?
Israel and U.S. Jewry.
inspiration
the situation and organizational
patterns of the present
Analyzing
several
How
did
the
revolution and exile
arise:
community,
questions
affect the demographic
of
Cuban
free are the
Jews? How
composition
to
to
what
extent
their
and
does
the
Jews
practice
government
religion
life? Is being a Jew an obstacle to complete as
control their communal
similation into Cuban society? What are the community's needs, and to
extent are they supplied
what
institutions? What
by the existing
traces from pre-revolutionary
times can be seen in today's Jewish com
In order to answer these and other questions, we will begin
munity?
with an historical survey of the Cuban arena and of the components of
Cubans,
seems
its Jewish community.
The Roots of Cuba's
Traditional
Attitude
towards the Jews
Cuba
lived under Spanish rule for almost 400 years. Spain's policy
had been tomaintain
religious purity and unity, and itdid not tolerate,
at least officially, the immigration of non-Catholics,
apart from that
of African slaves who were forced to convert.3 New Christians who had
settled in Cuba during colonial times had to hide their Jewish origin,
and there were several cases of crypto-Jews who were judged by the In
in the sixteenth and seventeenth
centuries.4
quisition,
particularly
With
into the Catholic
time, however,
they assimilated
society,
families preserved
thememory of their Jewish an
though some Cuban
cestry.
transmitted by Catholic priests or
antisemitism, as was
Religious
by the government's policy, was less powerful in Cuba than it had been
in Spain or in other Spanish possessions
(most of which had gained
their political freedom 80 years earlier than Cuba). Religious devotion
in Cuba characterized mainly
the representatives
of Spanish rule and
the immigrants
from Spain. Creole
society, apart from the higher
strata who
identified with Spanish values,
showed
little interest in
an
a
was
and
attitude
that
combination of
matters,
religious
developed
indifference
and
The large black population,
composed
was
more devoted
to its African heritage
slaves,
originally
than to Catholic doctrines.5
of both Jewish presence
and religious
fanaticism
The absence
tolerance.
of African
The JewishCommunityofCuba
117
to the disconnection
of the chain of antisemitism
that
contributed
to exist in Europe,
continued
transformed by political
and social
into new forms. In Cuba
circumstances
the Jewish problem had disap
and the image of the Jew as the crucifier of Christ was
peared,
converted into a diabolic mythical creature. When
Jewish immigration
to identify the
into Cuba
society refused
actually
began, Creole
newcomers as judios (Jews), since they had no horns nor tail.6 In popular
use the word "judio" referred to a child before he had been
baptized.7
The legal basis for the entry of Jews into Cuba was formed during
themilitary occupation by theUnited States (1898-1902),when the
of religious freedom and separation between
church and
principles
state were operative also in Cuba. These principles, however, were to
tally in accordance with the opinions of the founders of the Cuban re
and critics of the Catholic
public, many of whom had been Freemasons
Church that had opposed Cuban
independence. Unlike other countries
in Latin America, where
between
church and state was
separation
reached after protracted conflict between
liberals and conservatives,
religion had never been an issue among the advocates of Cuban freedom,
whose
in
[Catholic people]
people they considered "the least believing
the whole globe."8
Thus the entry of Jewish immigrants into Cuba did not arouse any
dormant prejudices, but was rather accepted as that of any other Euro
on
to the personal
pean group, according
impressions they had made
the Cuban people and to the economic and political circumstances
at
the time of immigration. Jews were nicknamed
after their major coun
tries of origin: Turcos (Turks) or Polacos (Poles). The image of the poor
Polaco peddler selling ties became part of Cuban
folklore. The Jewish
Turcos were not considered a distinct group, but were rather identified
with other immigrants
from the Middle
East, mainly
Syrians and
or
with
their
Ashkenazi
Lebanese,
co-religionists.
Jews never lost their stigma as Polacos, not even in today's Cuba
where
Jews, many of them children of mixed mar
third-generation
are
still
Polaco or the diminutive Po
sometimes
nicknamed
riages,
Like
and
the Chinos
the
(the Chinese),
laquito.
Gallegos
(Spaniards)
the Polacos have been recognized as one of theminority groups within
Cuban society.9
Like other minority groups, Jews were discriminated
against by law
in the
and by social attitudes following the rise of Cuban nationalism
ex
was
into
1930s.
converted
sporadic
Xenophobia
temporarily
early
as
a
antisemitism
of
of
consequence
instigations by agents of
pressions
Nazi Germany. A study on Cuban antisemitism during the period of the
from
Holocaust
that antisemitism was transmitted to Cuba
concluded
the
and
found
fertile
ground among
Europe
Spanish minority group, but
itdid not strike roots in the Cuban majority
society.10
Though largely dominated by theUnited States, Cuba had its
118
Margalit
Bejarano
was politically
spiritual roots in Spain and the Spanish Civil War
in
identified as
Cuba. The struggle against Spanish Fascism,
echoed
successor
to
their
found
colonial
the
oppressor,
great support among the
it rested primarily in
Cuban people as well as among its leadership;
into Fulgencio
and
later
the Communist
accepted
Party, legalized
Batista's first government
(1940-44).11
Since the days of the Popular Front, Cuban communists were among
of the Jewish community
attacks
the defenders
against antisemitic
between
both locally and internationally.
Jewish and
Friendship
Cuban communists consolidated during their collaboration on behalf of
the Allied cause, and in particular for the Red Army. The communists'
attitude of sympathy and solidarity towards the Jews, disseminated
was destined
during theirmutual struggle against Fascism and Nazism,
and should
to bear fruit both before and after the Castro Revolution,
not be overlooked while examining
the attitude of the revolutionary
government towards the Jewish community.
au
While
official antisemitism has never existed in Cuba, Cuban
on several occasions
a sympathetic atti
thorities have demonstrated
the Jewish people.
tude towards
It seems, however,
is
that Cuba
recorded in Jewish history mainly through two events ?
the St. Louis
Each of these
tragedy and its "no" vote on the partition of Palestine.
from its historical context, tends to distort both
episodes, disconnected
in the rescue of Jewish refugees during
overall balance
the
Cuba's
in
all
and
the
wide
its
for
the
Holocaust,12
support
political parties
establishment of a Jewish state in the land of Israel.13
The
attitude towards
the Jewish people,
sympathetic
especially
liberal
and politicians,
and
found its ex
intellectuals
among
left-wing
in the friendly relations that had developed
between Cuba
pression
and the State of Israel during the democratic presidency of Carlos Prio
Socarras
of Fulgencio
(1948-52) and during the military dictatorship
Batista
It should be stressed
that the great economic
(1952-58).14
made
local
the
above
Jews throughout
progress
by
period, accompanied
of nouvelle richesse, was accepted with great tolerance
by expressions
to
by the Cuban
society. This does not imply that social prejudices
were
were
wards
but
limited
to
the
non-existent,
Jews
they
mostly
higher social strata who were
clubs or social circles. Among
who were destined to carry on
Revolution, antisemitism was a
reluctant to accept Jews to prestigious
the low bourgeoisie
and poorer classes,
their shoulders the burden of the Castro
rare phenomenon.15
119
The History of the Jewish Immigrants
and their Institutions
The American Group
Jewish immigration into Cuba began with a small group of U.S. cit
War
izens who settled in Cuba after the Spanish-American
(1898) and
the
This
first
of
Cuban
first
nucleus
of
years
during
independence.
"American" Jews in Cuba was composed mainly of Romanian-born
Jews
who had lived in southern Florida where the Cuban movement
for in
in theU.S.
dependence was widely supported. Having been naturalized
saw
as
in En
conducted
life
social
themselves
their
Americans,
they
Their
with
the
local
American
and
identified
first
preoc
glish
colony.
cupation as Jews concerned the dead: in 1906 a group of eleven Jews
formed a society that would provide burial grounds for future Jewish
the name of the United Hebrew Congregation
Under
a
tract
of land in the nearby town of Guanabacoa,
they purchased
large
where the Jewish cemetery was inaugurated in 1910.16
In the first period of its existence, the activities of the United He
were limited to religious services during the High
brew Congregation
one of Havana's
in
hotels. Confronted
with poor
held
Holy Days,
settlers in Cuba.
Jews
immigrants from the Ottoman Empire, the American
Sephardic
were compelled
to grant them burial space, but refused to accept the
into their congregation.17
Sephardim
The arrival of U.S.-born
and representatives of
Jewish businessmen
American
firms in Cuba following the expansion of the sugar industry
of regular religious services within the frame
led to the organization
work of a Reform Temple called Beth Israel.
In 1921, after the firstU.S. Quota Act, hundreds of destitute immi
on the streets of Havana,
and
grants from Eastern Europe appeared
their number grew constantly. The small American group, estimated at
around 100 persons, came to their rescue with great personal devotion
saved
them from starvation.18 Their philanthropic
and practically
however, were highly criticized by U.S. welfare organiza
methods,
to work directly with the Eastern
tions that began to function in Cuba
as the
were
the
Americans
Thus
replaced
immigrants.
European
of
the
Jewish
community.
leadership
A similar story occurred fifteen years later when
imported Nazi
antisemitism
threatened the security of the local Jews and strength
and
from Germany
ened a restrictive immigration policy. Refugees
lan
Austria who had found temporary shelter in Cuba found a mutual
who
American
middle
class
with
the
Jews
represented
upper
guage
both
States.
to reach the United
their affluent past and their aspiration
in government
contacts
used
their
Individual American
Jews
120
Margalit
Bejarano
circles in defense of thewhole community, but were unable to attain the
confidence of the dominant group of Eastern European Jews. At the same
time they failed to collaborate with the Joint Distribution
Committee,
which had taken the responsibility for the Jewish refugees, and, as in
was
limited to the activities of
the early 1920s, their philanthropy
their women's
charity.
the United
of its philanthropic
the decline
With
requirements,
a
small
class
remained
Hebrew
upper
group, living so
Congregation
it domi
rest
from
the
of
the
Jewish
population. Although
cially apart
?
the cemetery, the American
nated one of the basic Jewish necessities
group did not lead the Jewish community at large.
The Sephardi Community
in Cuba was
of
that arrived
Jewish group
composed
immi
from
the
of
Their
Sephardi Jews, mostly
European parts
Turkey.
gration began with young men, seeking their fortune or fleeing military
service, who had arrived in Cuba prior toWorld War I,who would be
joined by their families soon after the war. In 1926 their number was
estimated at around 4,000: 1,500 inHavana
and the rest in the country
side.19 Like other immigrants from theMiddle
East, mostly Syrian and
Lebanese
Christians, Sephardi
Jews dispersed
throughout the island,
as
or
their
merchants.
living
petty
making
peddlers
Speaking Ladino
no
in
had
into the lan
they
(Judeo-Spanish),
difficulty
assimilating
guage of the country.
The first organization
of Cuban Sephardi
Jews, the Union Hebrea
Chevet Ahim, was founded in 1914 in order to supply all the religious
and social needs of the Sephardic
included daily
immigrants. These
and charity. Burial grounds were
services, kosher meat
religious
Another
can visit the
Jews. Tourists in today's Havana
granted by the American
of
Chevet
from
the
located
Ahim,
1920s,
original building
dating
early
on Inquisidor Street, in the quarter of Old Havana
where new immi
grants used to settle.
The second
center of Sephardi social life inHavana,
the club of the
Chevet Ahim on the Avenida
del Prado, has totally
The club, which had served as a second synagogue, used
disappeared.
to hold social and cultural activities
and, from the 1930s to the
Revolution, was considered by Sephardi parents as the best place for
their children to find a Jewish spouse.
Union
Hebrea
Ahim was considered
the mother-community
of Sephardi
in
were
the
most
in
of
which
founded
the 1920s,
interior,
organizations
contact with them through the yearly supply of
and it maintained
matzot or joint fundraising campaigns. The two major communities out
were
in Camaguey
side Havana
and Santiago de Cuba; both had a
Chevet
121
a
school.
rabbi, a synagogue, and occasionally
supplementary Hebrew
in Havana
of
He
used
the
the
While
United
Jews
cemetery
Sephardi
brew Congregation
(until they inaugurated their own cemetery in 1942),
in the different provincial
Jews built their own cemeteries
Sephardi
to their Ashkenazi
burial
facilities
and
towns,
they granted
brethren.20
Two
important
the development
of the
factors determined
mem
of
its
of
the
Cuba:
homogenous
composition
Sephardic community
im
most
bers and the presence of spiritual-religious
The
leadership.21
an
a
was
of
Rabbi
Gershon
descendant
leader,
portant religious
Maya,
old rabbinical family from Silivri, the community of origin of many of
as
to Jewish education
Rabbi Maya's
devotion
Havana's
Sephardim.
well as to the Zionist movement
found expression in the Teodoro Herzl
day school that served both the Sephardi community and the Zionist
Organization.
?
Jews were among the founders of the Union Sionista
Sephardi
Zionist Organization,
and for several years they continued to
Cuba's
collaborate with Ashkenazi
cause, al
Jews on behalf of the Zionist
though theywere gradually pushed away by theYiddish speaking
majority. This coincided with a growing economic gap between the two
sectors: while Ashkenazi
peddlers or workers were turning into mer
into better areas of residence,
chants and industrialists and moving
streets.
many Sephardim continued to peddle on Havana's
The
Eastern
European
Community
?
Poland, Russia, Lithuania, Ro
Immigrants from Eastern Europe
?
were
mania
the largest Jewish group that entered
and Hungary
Cuba. Their immigration began in 1921, as a consequence
of the first
U.S. Quota
size after the Johnson
Law, and reached a considerable
Reed Act of 1924. The number of those who settled in Cuba was esti
at around 8,000, but several thousand others passed
mated
through
on
route to theU.S.22
Cuba
The restrictive U.S. immigration policy coincided with a period of
economic crisis in Cuba.
Immigrants from Eastern Europe encountered
the un
great difficulties due to the general misery and unemployment,
and the difficult climate, and their greatest de
familiar surroundings
sire was to proceed northward to theU.S. Until around 1930, the Cuban
was
existence
characterized
Ashkenazi
by an unstable
population
caused by the strong waves of immigration from Europe and emigration
to the U.S., but with the ultimate closing of both Cuba and the U.S. to
in their new land.
immigration, Jews began to strike roots
inHavana.
Some made
to
concentrate
tended
Eastern European
Jews
to
others began
of petty merchandise,
their living as peddlers
122
Margalit
Bejarano
Since clothing and leather
manufacture
shoes, shirts, ties or underwear.
were
and
the cheap products
very expensive,
mostly
imported
goods
introduced by the Jews were in high demand, and the poor tailors and
shoemakers were soon able to hire newer immigrants for their sweat
shops.23
The institutional life of the Eastern European
Jews began in 1925
?
small
the workers
with a schism between
and the "bourgeoisie"
or owners of sweatshops whose economic situation was not
merchants
much better than that of their workers. The former created the Kultur
the latter founded
Is
Farain
the Centro
(Cultural Society), while
raelita de Cuba
both
to
of
the
Center
social
and
Cuba),
(Jewish
catering
spiritual needs of the Jewish immigrants.
The Kultur Farain was considered
themost active center of Jewish
cultural and social life in the late 1920s. It had a large collection of
a choir, a dramatic circle, and provided evening
books and periodicals,
Its leaders had close links with the Cuban
classes for its members.
in 1925, and they joined the political strug
Communist
founded
Party,
of Gerardo Machado
the
five of
(1925-1933),
gle against
dictatorship
them paying with their lives and several others being expelled
from
Cuba.24
in the early stages of Cuba's
Communist
Jewish presence
Party
aroused the interest of historians following the communist turn in Fidel
to theminutes of the founding session of
Castro's Revolution. According
the Cuban Communist Party three out of the ten founders were Jews;25
one of them, Yunger Simchowitch, was destined to
play a central role in
the history of Cuban communism under the name of Fabio Grobart. To
of the Central
day, at the age of 85 and still an active member
Committee
of the Cuban Communist
Party, Grobart denies his past
links with the Jewish community, but witnesses
remember him as the
most active propagandist
the
workers.26
Jewish
among
While
the Kultur Farain functioned as an active social center until
itwas closed in 1931 by the Cuban government, the Centro Israelita be
came the leading institution of Cuban
Jewry as a result of its relations
with
in the U.S. Social aid from U.S.
Jewish welfare
organizations
was
save
to
essential
the immigrants from misery and to serve
Jewry
their immediate needs, but itwas also intended to convince them to re
main in Cuba and give up theirAmerican dream.
of the American
institutions func
Jewish welfare
Representatives
tioning in Cuba directed all their financial support to the Centro Is
communal organi
raelita, hoping to transform it into a comprehensive
zation that would
provide all the social services for the Jewish popu
lation. Thus they accelerated
the development
of local institutional
the independence
of the local leadership
life, but they also weakened
and, in the long run, the Centro Israelita could not break free of its de
pendence on U.S. Jewry.
123
During more than 25 years, the Centro Israelita was recognized by
authorities as the representative organ of the Jewish com
the Cuban
munity, and though often its leadership was challenged by other orga
nizations, none of them was able to replace it. At the same time, the
the central arena for political conflicts inside the
Centro Israelita was
most
community; its
important function, however, was themaintenance
of the largest Jewish day school.
the above-mentioned
Besides
institutions, Eastern European
Jews
a
created
covering every aspect of their
large network of organizations
social life.27Two that continued to have an impact on Jewish life after
the revolution were Adath Israel and the Union Sionista.
Ashkenazi
immigrants to Cuba were not characterized by strict ob
servance
of Jewish law. A small group of Orthodox
Jews who assumed
founded
needs
of
the
whole
for
the
community
religious
responsibility
of
Adath
Israel in 1925, the most
important religious organization
to an old dispute between religious activists, a
Ashkenazi
Jews. Due
founded a second
Jews headed by Rabbi Zvi Kaplan
group of Orthodox
?
a synagogue
in the
Knesseth
Israel. Each maintained
congregation
same building, on Jesus Maria
harbor. Both
Street, close to Havana's
and circumcisions, and supervised kosher
provided religious weddings
In addition, Adath
Israel founded a Chevra Kadisha
slaughtering.
care
that took
of the religious aspects of burial, though the cemetery
remained the property of the American Jews.
The Zionist Organization
of Cuba was founded in 1924. Being a mi
Jews, the organization was highly de
nority among Eastern European
Ahim
the
Chevet
and in its early stages
pendent upon
congregation,
were
most
Its founders de
its
members.
active
Jews
among
Sephardic
?
the
cided to avoid political divisions by creating one Zionist Union
in future years: the
Union Sionista de Cuba. This unity was maintained
of all the Zionist move
Union Sionista served as the roof organization
ments ?
Maccabi
Hashomer
Hechalutz,
Hatzair,
and, in later years,
Betar and Hanoar Hazioni.28
in Cuba reflect
Conflicts between the Zionists and the communists
the majority of
similar conflicts throughout the Jewish world. While
Kultur
Farain en
to
the
the
Ashkenazi
class,
Jews belonged
working
on the Jewish street. The influence of Cuban national
its
heyday
joyed
in the number of
and the decrease
labor movement
ism on the Cuban
of Jewish advo
the
number
diminished
workers
Jewish
considerably
a
cates of communism,
small, though militant, group. With the
leaving
Party (1938), Jewish communists
legalization of the Cuban Communist
became very active, and in spite of bitter disputes with the Zionists
their popularity
Pact, they regained
during the Molotov-Ribbentrop
their activities on behalf of the
invasion of Russia when
after Hitler's
Red Army were aligned with Jewish interests.
Zionism, however, was slowly growing among themasses of Cuban
124
Margalit
Bejarano
in
shaken by the horrors of the Holocaust,
Jews who were deeply
in
had
lost
relatives.
Witnesses
which many Cuban Ashkenazi
Jews
terviewed for an historical study of Cuban
Jewry testified about their
or
to emphatic
from
indifference
transformation
opposition
ideological
was
the
Zionist
This
for
movement.29
tendency
support
highly acceler
of the State of Israel.
ated after the establishment
World War
II Refugees
the period of the Holocaust,
Cuba
temporary
During
provided
shelter for almost 12,000 refugees.30 Half of these refugees, mostly from
1939,
Germany and Austria, entered Cuba between June 1938 and May
in Cuban
immigration laws and semi-official arrange
using loopholes
ments based on graft.31 Although granted temporary residence that for
many meant rescue from the concentration camps, the refugees were in
constant danger of deportation. Since Cuban
law deprived
them of the
were
in
to
them
of
engage
gainful occupations, many
totally de
right
or
on
on
their
relatives'
aid
of
the
the
Jewish Joint
support
pendent
Distribution Committee
(JDC).32
The famous incident of the ship St. Louis, when more
than 1,000
were
were
to
Havana
and
refused
into
Jewish refugees
entry
compelled
return to Europe, resulted in the locking of Cuba's gates 33These, how
in October
ever, were reopened
1940, and remained open until April
1942, thus facilitating the rescue of over 5,000 Jews from various coun
tries in Central and Western
Europe. Their entry was conditioned
by
the payment of large sums ofmoney to Cuban officials, so that this out
let was available
only to the wealthy.34
The most dominant group among those who arrived inCuba between
1940 and 1942 were from Belgium. Unlike
the refugees from Germany
and Austria, socially disconnected
from the local Ostjuden, many of the
in the
Belgian Jews were originally from Poland and they participated
a
local organizations,
to
the
of
the
giving
special impulse
development
Zionist movement.
Their strongest impact was the establishment of the
diamond
that provided a
industry, encouraged
by Cuba's government,
35
source
income
of
both
for
veteran
and
Jews
profitable
refugees
After World War
centers were rehabilitated,
II, previous diamond
and the small Belgian colony in Cuba either returned to
or
Antwerp
to
were
New
York.
Other
to
able
Jewish refugees
emigrated
gradually
enter the U.S. through the quotas of their countries of
origin, especially
when emigration from Europe came almost to a stop
during thewar. The
a
without
large colony of Jewish refugees eventually
disappeared
a
its
in
few
the
Guanabacoa
trace,
graves
only imprint being
cemetery
carrying German inscriptions.
The Jewish Community Under
Military Dictatorship
125
Batista's
marked
the military
repression,
by violent
political
Though
Batista
of
(1952-1958)
dictatorship
Fulgencio
brought prosperity to the
sectors into which
the Jews had been integrated. Sephardi
economic
Jews, formerly dispersed
throughout the island, centered in the main
in Havana.
In the capital, the once poor immigrants
cities, especially
areas such as Santos
of Old Havana
into better residential
moved
or the elegant Miramar. While
the majority were en
Suarez, Vedado,
gaged in commerce and industry, many among the second generation,
and Sephardim
Ashkenazim
and
alike, acquired
higher education
turned to the liberal professions.36
Jews did not interfere in political matters, since the process of their
assimilation within Cuban society was only at its beginning. A group of
in
Cultural Hebreo-Cubana
young intellectuals founded the Agrupacion
order to encourage understanding between Jews and Cubans. Among Jew
ish university students, however, only a small minority were engaged
in the revolutionary underground movement.37
Jewish communists had
been active in Cuban politics, but during this period they almost to
from the Jewish arena, following the repression of
tally disappeared
with the Soviet Union's
the Communist
Party and disappointment
toward
Israel
the
and
Jews.
policy
of the State of Israel, the Jewish commu
Since the establishment
a Zionist revival. Activities on behalf of the Jewish
nity experienced
state were the axis of Jewish communal
life, and their economic pros
perity expressed itself in generous contributions to the Israel Bond drive
and other Zionist campaigns. Diplomatic
relations between Cuba and
in 1954, strengthened
the self-confidence
of the lo
Israel, established
cal Jews. Friendship
between
the two countries was
reflected in the
planting of the JoseMarti Forest in the Judean hills and the naming of a
the president of
school "Estado de Israel."38 Sender Kaplan,
as
the Union
Consul
of Israel (1951
functioned
Sionista,
Honorary
as
was
thus
both
the diplomatic
he
1960);
recognized
representative of
the State of Israel and themain leader of the Jewish community.
An important consequence
of both economic prosperity and self-con
of exhibitionist construction of new buildings
fidence was a movement
the Pa
for the Jewish institutions. The most salient among them was
tronato ? Casa de la Comunidad
Hebrea de Cuba (House of the Jewish
The Pa
of Cuba), situated on 13th and I Streets in Vedado.
Community
tronato was
initiated by a group of rich Jews, and designed by the fa
mous Cuban architect Aquiles Capablanca.
in Octo
Itwas inaugurated
Havana
ber 1955 in the presence of President Batista, Prime Minister
Jorge Gar
cia Montes,
and other high officials.39
to replace the Centro Israelita de Cuba
The Patronato was designed
126
Margalit
Bejarano
as the representative organ of the Jewish community, and its building
reflected the transformation of Cuban
Jews from their position as a
in a foreign land, to that of
for
survival
group of immigrants, struggling
class. The
in
the
an established
general middle
colony, well-rooted
a
mod
was
beautiful
divided
between
large building of the Patronato
hall
main
had a
a
whose
ern synagogue and
social and cultural center,
from
noticeable
The
building,
magnificent
capacity of 1,250 seats.40
afar by its high arch and decorated with Jewish emblems, symbolized
the self-deceptive
tranquillity and confidence of the Jewish community
in its future.
of the Orthodox
Members
Israel,
group, gathered around Adath
own
where many of
in Old Havana,
erect
their
to
building
preferred
them still lived.41 On the corner of Picota and Acosta Streets they con
(600 seats),
structed a three-story building containing a large synagogue
a reception hall, a small synagogue
for the daily minyan, and a mikve.
Israel served as
The building of the Patronato and the new Adath
sector. Upper
class Sephardim
to the Sephardi
models
living in
a
new
to establish
that
and Miramar
wished
Vedado
organization
fit their new social position. They founded a new congregation,
would
Centro Hebreo Sefaradi, that constructed a beautiful synagogue and so
The building of the Centro
cial center on 17th and E Streets in Vedado.
of Old
was
with
the Sephardim
Sefaradi
accompanied
by conflicts
who were faithful to the primacy of Chevet Ahim. However,
Havana
had time to
occurred before the Sephardim
the Castro Revolution
new
to
the
center
and
their
redefine
relationship
properly inaugurate
between the new Centro Sefaradi and the old Chevet Ahim.
in Cuba,
The first Jewish organization
the United Hebrew Congre
was
to
the
fever. In 1956, after
last
be
construction
the
caught by
gation,
of the congregation's
the celebration
fiftieth anniversary, American
Fifth Avenue
Jews were about to purchase a piece of land on Miramar's
the
however. When
and 32nd Street. Their project never materialized,
Revolution occurred, American Jews were among the first to leave Cuba
and return to theU.S., which they considered as their homeland.
The Attitude
of the Revolutionary
toward the Jews
Government
The Cuban Revolution, which took power on 1 January 1959, brought
about the total destruction of the former economic, political and social
structure in which the Jewish community had prospered. Nationaliza
tion of private business, economic privations, and Fidel Castro's
open
were among the causes
identification with Marxist-Leninist
ideology
class Cubans
of the large-scale
of upper
and middle
emigration
127
from
Jews, whose number declined
including the majority of Cuban
10,000-12,000 in 1959 to 1,200 in 1963.42
A large number of Cuban Jews had emigrated to theU.S.; like other
Cuban emigrants, they were treated by the new government as enemies
of the revolution,
their property was
confiscated and they were al
lowed to take along only a minimal number of personal belongings. Jews
and the Israeli
leaving for Israel were aided by the Jewish Agency
were
and
the
and
of
the Cuban au
Legation,
respect
granted
sympathy
thorities, though only a small number chose the Zionist solution.43 The
leaders of the community, settled in
majority,
including the Zionist
Miami.
in Cuba were allowed
The Jews remaining
to maintain
all their
former institutions. These included five congregations:
the United He
brew Congregation
of the American
Jews, the Patronato and Adath Is
rael of the Ashkenazi
and Chevet
sector, and the Centro Sefaradi
Ahim of the Sephardim. The government did not attempt to confiscate
these buildings,
the number of their members
had severely
although
declined. Moises
Baldas, who served as the leading Jewish activist
after the Revolution
(until his emigration to Israel in 1981), organized
an informal committee
composed of the presidents of the five congrega
tions in order to coordinate
their activities and represent the Jewish
before
the
The Comision
authorities.
Coordinadora
community
became
the de facto roof organization
of
Committee)
(Coordinating
Cuban Jewry.44
the Revolution,
the Jewish community was granted spe
Following
cial privileges
to supply its religious needs, such as kosher food and
to function
Jewish education. The shochet of Adath Israel was allowed
in the government slaughtering house, and the meat was divided be
tween the kosher restaurant of the Patronato and Jewish customers who
were allowed
to receive their meat rations at the kosher butcher. In
to receive matzot
the
and other
addition,
community was allowed
for
Pessach
from
abroad.
products
The nationalization
of education brought about the closure of all
to
schools.
Jews, however, were granted special permission
private
provide Jewish education within the government system. The school of
the Centro Israelita was named after Albert Einstein and converted to a
school. In addition, it provided daily classes in
regular neighborhood
and Jewish history, and the government
supplied
functioned
the Jewish children.45 This arrangement
for
transportation
until 1975, when itwas suddenly stopped by government order 46
It should be recalled that the regulations under which
the Jewish
community functioned were formed during the firstperiod of the Revo
lution, while Cuba maintained
friendly relations with the State of Is
rael, and the Jewish community felt somewhat protected by the Israeli
Hebrew,
Yiddish
128
Margalit
Bejarano
initial sympathy towards Israel and the Jew
Fidel Castro's
Legation.
ish people has been explained by some scholars as stemming from his
?
in an anti-Nazi and anti-Franco
consolidated
political background
links
with Ricardo Subirana y Lobo
in his close personal
atmosphere,
?
in
to
the image of Israel as a small coun
Cuba's Ambassador
Israel,
as well
try surrounded by enemies and guided by a socialist leadership,
as in Castro's
vis-a-vis
the
desire to maintain
independence
political
Soviet Union.47
to terminate diplo
resistance to strong political pressures
Cuba's
matic relations with Israel after the Six-Day War
changed with Cas
Israel at the
announcement
relations with
tro's sudden
breaking
inAlgiers in September 1973. Since
Nations
Conference of Non-Aligned
then Cuba has become one of the most vociferous attackers of Israel
and in the international arena. In 1975 itwas
both in its local media
one of the sponsors of theU.N. General Assembly's
resolution equating
interna
Zionism with racism.48 An important consequence
of Cuba's
towards Zionism was the closure in 1978 of the Union
tional position
to function in Havana.
The
Sionista de Cuba, which had continued
building was given to the PLO and converted into the Union Arabe de
Cuba.
a clear distinction between Zionism
and
Officially Cuba maintains
anti
the former is attacked daily in the mass media,
Judaism; while
some publica
semitism is strictly forbidden by law.49 Nevertheless,
tions carry a clear tinge of antisemitism, stemming from Soviet or Arab
sources. Attacks against Israel were particularly strong during the gov
ernment of Menachem
in Cuban
cartoons as "a dog
Begin, depicted
a
a
collar
with
Other
swastika."50
wearing
examples may be found in
books such as that of Abu Mazzen,
The Truth on Secret Relations Be
txveenNazism
and Zionism.51 In his study on "Cuban
Jews during 30
Years of Revolution," Moises
Asis qualifies
the antisemitic deviations
as exceptions
to the Cuban rule "not to confuse information or propa
its
ganda against Israel with negative hints against the Jewish People,
or
culture
religion,
history."52
Asis' view should not be taken as lip service to the authorities;
neither the Jewish community nor individual Jews had been victims of
wrote
David
discrimination.
that "It is difficult to avoid
Kopilow
the
conclusion
that
the
anti-Zionist
official
stand of the gov
drawing
ernment on international questions has translated into a callousness and
hostility towards the Cuban-Jewish
community that can be called anti
Semitic,"53 but he does not offer evidence to substantiate his conclusion.
This author
is convinced
that neither official nor social anti
a clear
Semitism exists in Cuba,
and that the government makes
on
its policy
distinction
between
towards
based
Israel,
political
and its attitude towards the Jewish community. The
considerations,
factors: ideological
of several
latter is a combination
principles
129
any discrimination
opposing
against minorities;
sensitivity towards
international public opinion, that examines the Jewish community as a
test case of religious
traditional
towards
the
freedom;
sympathy
and the continuation
bureaucratic
of previous
Jewish community;
in the early 1960s.54
established
arrangements,
It should be added
that the special attitude of Cuba's
communist
towards the Jewish community, as well as towards other
government
religious groups, cannot be explained without
taking into account the
Dr.
de
of
head
of the Oficina de
Carneado,
Jose
Felipe
personality
in the Central Com
Asuntos Religiosos
(Office of Religious Matters)
mittee of the Cuban Communist Party. Born in a provincial
town, well
was politically educated
rooted in Cuban
tradition, Carneado
among
an ardent supporter
the old-time
communists.
He became
of the
a deep respect for
Cuban
tradition
Revolution, but maintained
popular
and beliefs. For almost 30 years he has been responsible for all religious
matters in Cuba. One of his greatest achievements was to create a clear
in the case of the
distinction between religion and politics, especially
Catholic Church, where
forces
struggles against anti-revolutionary
were intermingled with suppression
of religion. Carneado's
tolerance
and openness
resulted in the special modus
vivendi existent in Cuba,
where religious groups that accept the government's
rules not to iden
are
with
not
Cuba's
official
tolerance, but
opponents
tify
granted
only
are practically protected
in the pro
the
Office
of
Matters
Religious
by
vision of all their needs.55 The Jewish community is only one such ex
ample.
The Present Situation56
The number of Cuban Jews today is estimated around 1,000. The only
available data is the annual Passover
census, carried out by the Coor
to
Asis'
Committee.
calculations, based on the 1989
dinating
According
census, 892 persons subscribed in the Jewish community formatzot and
other kosher products. Of these, 635 were Jews and the rest were non
The
Jewish spouses or other persons
living in the same household.57
number
fact
is
the
of
that
of
food
non-Jews
large
explained by
scarcity
it impossible to discriminate between Jews and non-Jews while
makes
foodstuffs to people
distributing
living under the same roof. On the
other hand it is assumed
that a large number of Jews refrain from sub
scription in the Jewish community because of their communist convic
tions, or their fear to identify openly with the Jewish community.
Cuban Jews do not constitute a separate socio-economic
group, and
are
well-assimilated
within
the
they
general society. Twenty percent
in the profes
of the persons counted in the community's census worked
not
with
number
the
those
identified
and
their
sions,
among
community
130
Margalit
Bejarano
to be higher.58 A small number of Jews, mostly Sephardim,
is assumed
is centered in the capital.
live in the interior towns, but the majority
a
of
old
number
from
people still living in Old
relatively large
Apart
whereas
the
Havana,
Jews are dispersed
prior to the
city,
throughout
in distinct areas. One of the
to
concentrate
tended
Revolution
they
for the
is to provide
transportation
facing the community
problems
dis
of the large geographic
Jewish school or other activities because
tances.
are still functioning in
Four out of the five religious congregations
de los
The Reform temple of the American
Havana.
Jews, on Avenida
continued to function until around 1980 when it
Presidentes
(in Vedado),
the building is now un
was sold to the government for lack ofmembers;
dergoing reconstruction by the Cuban state.
The property of theUnited Hebrew Congregation was passed on to
it
has not been formally dissolved;
Adath
Israel, but the organization
to
fulfill
official
that meets
of Directors
has a Board
regularly,
in 1967, the
of the cemeteries
Since the nationalization
obligations.
the United
for
but
burial
state has assumed
expenses,
responsibility
and
continues to be recognized as the manager
Hebrew Congregation
once
cornerstone
the
of
had
been
that
the
of
Jewish
cemetery
proprietor
institutional existence in Cuba.
still functioning in its
Chevet Ahim is the only Jewish organization
the
and
it
remained
years as the center
throughout
original premises,
to
in
of
Old
whom
continued
of the Sephardim
Havana,
many
living
work as peddlers until private commerce was prohibited. While many
received com
of the Jews who remained in Cuba after the Revolution
in gov
for their nationalized
property or found employment
pensation
ernment-owned
the poor Sephardi peddlers, who did
establishments,
not profit from the economic
lacked
under Batista,
opportunities
initiative to leave Cuba and were unable to adjust to the revolutionary
regime. Some of them remained with no source of income and have since
been living on the small subvention distributed by the local Jewish in
stitutions.
Chevet Ahim continued to serve as a social and religious center as
Since its guiding
long as it had an active leadership.
spirit, Jacobo
has
taken ill, the situation of the Sephardi
Perez, was
organization
been constantly deteriorating, and since the death of the haham Susi in
1986, there is no one capable of conducting religious services.
For several years the government permitted
the functioning of a
bar, and revenues from the sale of beer financed the social activities of
is totally depen
Chevet Ahim. Now
the old Sephardi
organization
dent on the income of the Centro Sefaradi; both have the same board of
directors, headed by Roberto Levi, and the same membership.
Friday
evening
prayers
are held at Chevet
services
at the Centro Sefaradi. During
Ahim
and
this author's
Sabbath
morning
stay in Havana,
131
services were conducted by an old man who could barely read Hebrew or
by a young Cuban who had adopted Judaism and studied at the small
(see below). The depressing
Jewish school at the Patronato
impression
made by the former and the surprising knowledge
of the latter prove
the urgent necessity of basic religious instruction in order to avoid the
closure of these synagogues.
its inner forces are gradually dying out, Chevet Ahim has
While
received unexpected
from the fact that it is located in an
encouragement
area to be preserved
was
for its historical
importance. Old Havana
in 1982 as part of theWorld's
and
recognized by UNESCO
Heritage,
the quarter is undergoing
reconstruction under the surveillance of Euse
bio Leal, the City Historian. The old Sephardi synagogue, decorated
in
the early 1920s, is now being repaired by the Cuban
socialist state.
of the Board of Directors
of Chevet Ahim claim that their
rich
with
memories
and
of
historical value, deserves
to be
building,
turned into a Jewish museum,
but it seems that without help from out
side sources they are bound to leave the naked walls as the sole wit
nesses to their past.
The decline of the Sephardi community is even more remarkable at
the Centro Sefaradi. The beautiful building,
the spacious
including
to
has
been
hired
out
the
synagogue,
government-owned
symphony or
Members
chestra, and thus has been converted into the only source of income of
in the Sabbath
the Sephardic
service enter
community. Participants
a
the building
the
side
entrance
into
small
synagogue
through
leading
and an office; a table placed in themiddle of the corridor serves as the
meeting place after services, where breakfast is served. Here, as in the
to attract par
other institutions, refreshments are an essential means
ticipants.
to the Sephardim,
sector seems much
the Ashkenazi
Compared
a wider
better organized
of
and provides
functions; it has a
range
a
some
broader
and
stronger
leadership
membership,
including
two
centers:
Adath
of
It
is
divided
between
Israel
Old
Sephardim.
in Vedado.
Both have rented out or sold
Havana
and the Patronato
part of their original buildings as a source of income (the former to the
radio and TV orchestra and the latter to a theater company), but they
have preserved a much larger part for their current activities.
Adath Israel, which continues to function as themost important re
that the
by the rental agreement
ligious center, was
guaranteed
and
the
from
orchestra would
the
of
refrain
synagogue
respect
sanctity
of
the
More
than
two-thirds
festivities.
Jewish
during
rehearsing
in
the
is
used
the
Jewish organization,
particular
ground
building
by
floor where
the daily activities are centered. The large hall is di
a sense of
vided into compartments
by low partitions, thus creating
and the
the
the
the
between
offices,
hall,
synagogue,
dining
unity
area. A daily minyan,
is held
of
old
recreation
mostly
people,
132
Margalit
Bejarano
regularly twice a day. The modest breakfast served after the morning
prayer is an important part of the participants'
daily nourishment. A
chat around the dining table, followed by a game of dominos, converts
the daily prayer into a center of social activity, a poor version of a
golden age club.
for kosher slaughtering, authorized
Israel is responsible
Adath
by
the Cuban government and carried out in themunicipal
slaughterhouse.
Since meat and fowl are strictly rationed, Jews are entitled to buy their
meat quota in the community's Carniceria
(butcher shop), which opens
three consecutive Mondays
each month; 431 persons are subscribed as its
regular clients.59
Adath
Israel lacks spiritual leadership
Unfortunately,
some
most
of
the
basic
supply
religious services. Without
or conversions;
rabbi in Cuba there are no Jewish weddings
ceremonies have totally disappeared,
and there has been
circumcize newborns for over ten years.
Adath Israel, serving also as Chevra Kadisha,
devotes
and cannot
a resident
bar mitzvah
no mohel to
much effort
to provide Jewish burial for Ashkenazi
Jews. Since many of the Jews
left in Cuba are intermarried, the families are not always cooperative
in fulfilling the deceased's
wish
to be buried according
to ancestral
situations.
tradition, and they sometimes have to cope with delicate
Abraham
director of Adath Israel, who acts also
Berezniak, managing
as ritual slaughterer, confessed
that it is a particularly difficult task
to wash and dress the dead, but, like his colleagues
in the Sephardi
community, the few remaining activists must fulfill this sacred obliga
tion.60
While Adath Israel focuses on supplying basic religious necessities,
the Patronato
stresses cultural activities and the representation of the
to
the outside world. The Patronato has preserved
its for
community
mer synagogue,
famous for its rich metal door covered with Jewish in
the outside aspect of the building has been well-pre
signia. While
served, the hall of the once-magnificent
synagogue presents a sad sight
to Jewish tourists
the ceiling is broken,
the once
visiting Havana;
an empty ark ?
beautiful parochet ?
is
and
the
Seat of
torn,
covering
Eliahu
is covered with dove-droppings.
is only a par
This, however,
tial view: the next room houses a small synagogue,
well-preserved,
with
services
in accordance
conducted
with
the
regular Sabbath
Ashkenazi
rite by people who still remember the tradition.
On the ground floor, the part of the
of
building still in possession
the Jewish community consists of a small office, a
an
hall
with
large
adjoining kitchen, and a library. In the 1960s and 1970s the community
had its own restaurant which served kosher food; now the
place is used
to prepare
lunch for participants
in the Sabbath
services and as the
central
gathering
place
during
Jewish festivals. Here
the Patronato
133
and Purim, open to
holds a community Seder and parties on Hannukah
the entire Jewish public.
The library, directed by Adela Dworin, houses a large collection of
books in different languages, and is the only place where one can find a
Jewish printed word. Unfortunately,
during the last thirty years only
and
books
have
found their way into that collec
sporadic periodicals
tion. Cuban
intellectuals interested in information about Israel or the
Jewish people, or young Cuban Jews curious to learn about their ances
tral tradition, find a meager
selection. The rich collection of Yiddish
?
once the best sellers on the Jewish street?
classics
accumulate dust
on the shelves.
a
The Patronato
houses
the community's
School where
Sunday
small group of children learns Hebrew,
the meaning
of Jewish festi
vals, and some Jewish history. The school was first organized by Moi
ses Baldas,
to substitute for
then head of the Coordinating
Committee,
the Albert Einstein school after itwas closed in 1975. The decline in the
number of children and the death or emigration of the teachers had
brought about its closure, and in the early 1980s there was no formal
in Cuba. Following a visit by members
of the Habad
Jewish education
in 1985 by Moises Asis.
the Sunday School was reorganized
movement,
Aided by another volunteer
Asis has to cope
teacher, Dr. Mechulam,
with many difficulties:
to locate Jewish children, to convince
their
to
to
to
to
send
them
the
little
and
draw
their
attention
school,
parents
a language and tradition that is completely
ex
to
their
foreign
daily
perience.
Almost
all the students in the Sunday School, like the rest of the
of the Jewish community, are children of mixed
generation
in fact, it is hard to define "who is a Jew" in Cuba. An un
marriages;
known number of those who had been born to Jewish families have cho
sen the path of militant communism, and keep aloof from everything
to
connected with Judaism. On the other hand, Cuban women, married
traditional
inheritance
of
their
husbands
Jewish men, often defend the
more zealously
than Jewish-born mothers. Many
of those identifying
as
not
their
denial by halakhic
themselves
understand
Jews might
a
sense
of
strong
belonging to Judaism but very
conceptions; they possess
younger
vague knowledge.
Jewish youth do not possess a formal organization, but both the Pa
tronato and Adath
Israel serve as gathering places for young people
been edu
yearning to learn something about their tradition. Having
in atheist Cuba, most of these youngsters have little interest in
with the elderly Jews who
understanding
religion and little mutual
in
rather
wish to understand
the
services.
synagogue
They
participate
more
than
and
of
their
else,
lack,
Jewish
anything
identity,
meaning
cated
adequate
spiritual guidance.
134
Margalit
Bejarano
As mentioned
is facili
above, the existence of Jewish congregations
tated by the government, which pays the rent for their buildings
and
their
of
None
the
Jewish
supervises
legal functioning.
organizations
have altered their by-laws since the Revolution,
and they are careful
to fulfill the formal requirements, including regular elections, payment
of membership
outside visitor
of records of meetings.61 To the
fees, and preservation
itmay seem that the division among four synagogues
the small existing community, but agitation of this fragile
weakens
structure might prove fatal. In addition, local Jews consider the preser
vation of their institutions as an existential problem, and the struggle
tomaintain
all four organizations
is a barrier against indifference.
Leaders of the community are aware of the dangers of inner division
to avoid further weakening
and coordinate
their activities
of their
forces. The Coordinating
of
the
Committee,
composed
presidents and
secretaries of the five communal
is
essential
both to
organizations,
have a single voice vis-a-vis the government and for internal purposes.
One of themajor functions of the Coordinating
is the di
Committee
vision and sale of products
for Passover,
received annually
from the
Canadian
The role that these products
fulfill in the
Jewish Congress.
lives of Cuban
Jews is incredibly important, since they often represent
the only link with Judaism, especially for people
living in the interior
towns where no form of Jewish organization
exists. There is no denying
that several people buy Passover products in order to supplement
their
poor diet, especially during periods of economic difficulty. The ability
of the Jewish organizations
to sweeten
the Jewish holidays with a
richer meal becomes
their source of attraction; for children of assimi
lated families, the eating of a traditional dish becomes
an expression
of identification with Jewishness.
Passover products are distributed free to people who cannot afford
to pay for them; others are charged a symbolic
price which serves as a
source of revenue to enable the
to provide a
Committee
Coordinating
of the worshipers
at Adath
monthly stipend for those in need. Many
on these
Israel are totally dependent
are
which
their only
stipends
source of income. The Canadian
has been the only
Jewish Congress
to a
continuous
assistance
pipeline which has provided
community
which had felt, formany years, disconnected
and forgotten by the Jew
ish world.
The general problems of the community were dealt with for over
activist who struggled
to
Baldas, a devoted
twenty years by Moises
maintain
education
cul
and
Jewish continuity, in particular
through
tural activities. Since his emigration to Israel in 1981, the President of
the Patronato,
Dr.
as chairman
has acted
of the
Jose Miller,
Committee. As such he represents the Jewish community
Coordinating
before the Oficina de Asuntos
headed
Religiosos,
by Dr. Carneado,
with whom he maintains
relations.
He
also
friendly
joined the Consejo
135
de Cuba ?
the representative organization of the Protestant
in order to guarantee the Jewish community the same rights
as their fellow Christians.
In a published
the difficult politi
interview Dr. Miller
explained
cal problem facing the Jewish community in light of Cuba's
hostility
to Dr. Miller, all the Jews in the diaspora
towards Israel. According
Ecumenico
churches ?
identify with the State of Israel, that is, with its existence, but this
He
does not imply that they have to defend all its governments.
the State of Israel and has never
stressed that Cuba had recognized
denied
its right to exist, but its international position towards Israel is
to assume erroneously
This has led people
that
unfavorable.
totally
Cuba's
attitude towards Israel is reflected internally. "The Cuban gov
ernment had the tact, the delicacy, the sufficient intelligence and sub
tlety to separate one thing from the other. We had to respond to this
attitude also with the same delicacy and the same subtlety. Our rela
tions with the Cuban government are based exclusively on our faith, our
culture, our right to Jewish identity."62
It is obvious
that the Jewish community has to separate between
religious identity and politics in order to exist. It should be added that
the author received the impression that the
during her stay inHavana
not
is
Cuban
affected by the hostile propaganda
public
necessarily
and
that
traditional
towards Israel and
against Zionism,
sympathies
the Jewish people have not disappeared
and might come to the surface
should Cuba change itsMiddle
Eastern policy.
Conclusion
Observation
of the present situation of the Cuban Jewish community
as well as others
indicate factors that might lead to its disappearance
its
most
the
the
former,
promising
continuity. Among
significant are
trends of demographic
decline:
of
the Jewish
emigration,
aging
in par
and
The
assimilation.
lack
of
population,
spiritual leadership,
to the
ticular of an ordained
rabbi or mohel, is a serious obstacle
of the Jewish family. The poverty
preservation
cannot compete with
and cultural activities
of Jewish educational
those offered by the
majority
society. Jewish continuity is also threatened by the fear to
as a barrier to one's ca
with
identify
religious institutions, considered
reer. Whether
or
seems
to prevent a large
this
fear
real,
imaginary
number of governmentally-employed
from approaching
professionals
the community.
The existence and functioning of the Jewish congregations are among
the most
important factors that strengthen the trends of continuity.
With all their shortcomings,
these institutions facilitate the provision
an active Jewish social framework.
of religious services and maintain
136
Margalit
Bejarano
The
Cuban
and
framework
defends
this institutional
government
facilitates its existence, and thus contributes to Jewish continuity.
Another
important factor for continuity is the sense of identity
with the Jewish people, existent not only among the older generation,
but also among young people born and raised under the Revolution. Less
fearful than their parents, they search for a form of Jewish identity
that would
suit their Cuban background.
They seem less preoccupied
with the conservation
of the present institutions and more with the
search for true sources of inspiration.
Notes
1.
first phase of Cuba's Liberation War (1868-1878) ended with a
peace treaty between Spain and the rebel army (the Pact of Zanjon). In
a dramatic encounter between Cuban General Antonio Maceo and the
known as "the Protest of
Spanish commander Martinez Campos,
to
the
terms of the treaty since it
former
refused
the
Baragua,"
accept
did not recognize the abolition of slavery (Maceo was black) and
The
Cuba's
2.
independence.
Jose Marti
Cuba's
See
poet,
C.A.M.
thinker and writer;
Hennessy,
"The
Roots
the apostle
of Cuban
of
Na
International Affairs, 39:3 (July 1963):345-359.
On Spain's and Cuba's
immigration policy, see Duvon C. Corbitt,
in Cuba," Hispanic
America Historical
Review, 22
"Immigration
(1942):280-308.
tionalism,"
3.
(1853-1895):
independence.
4.
The history of Cuban Jews under colonial Spain has still to be studied.
Though outdated, themost comprehensive account isMax Kohler, "Los
Judios en Cuba," Revista Bimestre Cubana, XV (1920):125-129, based
on the author's entry, "Cuba," in the Jewish Encyclopedia of 1903. See
also Eduardo Weinfeld,
"Cuba,"
Judaica Castellana
Encyclopedia
(Mexico, 1947); Leizer Ran, "Information and Data on 400 Years of
Jewish Immigration to Cuba
(1492-1948)," Hemshej oif Kubaner Erd
(Havana, 1950), pp. 70-72 (Yiddish).
5. Lowry Nelson, Rural Cuba (Minneapolis, 1951), p. 175; Manuel Moreno
Fraginals, "Iglesia e ingenio," Revista de la Biblioteca Nacional Jose
Marti, V, 1-4 (1963):ll-28.
6.
Interviews: Jack Barrocas, Carmiel, 1983; Moises
Esther Mitrani et ah, Miami, 1984; Jose and Sol
David
Ilan, Beit Zera, 1983. Interviews are kept
Institute of Contemporary
Division,
Jewry, The
7.
con Frei Betto," Fidel y la religion (Havana,
"Conversaciones
pp. 101, 107-108.
8.
Diario
Levin, Miami, 1984;
Credi, Miami, 1984;
at the Oral History
Hebrew University,
Jerusalem.
1985),
de Sesiones de la Convencion Constituyente de la Isla de Cuba,
Havana, 27 January 1901, p. 216; L. Bethel, "A Note on Church and the
The JewishCommunityofCuba 137
9.
Independence of Latin America/' Cambridge History of Latin America,
III (Cambridge, 1985), pp. 223, 229-230.
Antonio Nunez
Jimenez, Geografia de Cuba (Havana, 1959), p. 173.
Bejarano, "Antisemitism in Cuba during the Period of the Holo
caust," Yahadut Zemanenu, V (Jerusalem, 1989):326-327 (Hebrew).
The implications of the Spanish Civil War on Cuban politics are ana
lyzed in the profound essay of Alistair Hennessy, "Cuba," in M. Fal
coff and F.B. Pike, eds., The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939, American
Hemispheric Perspectives (Lincoln, 1982), pp. 101-158.
10. M.
11.
12.
accurate appraisal of Cuba's balance of rescue appears in Ruth
Zariz, Rescue of German Jews through Emigration 1938-1945, Doctoral
Thesis, Hebrew University, p. 292 (Hebrew). On the history of the St.
Louis, see Arthur Morse, While Six Million Died (New York, 1968),
pp. 270-288; Irving Gellman, "The St. Louis Tragedy," American Jew
and Max
ish Historical Quarterly (1971):144-156; Gordon Thomas
the
Damned
1974).
Witts,
(Connecticut,
Voyage of
Morgan
13.
Comite
14.
15.
An
Cubano Pro Palestina Hebrea, 2 de Noviembre 1917-1946; M.
Bejarano, "Antisemitism in Cuba under Democratic, Military and Rev
olutionary Rule," Patterns of Prejudice (Summer 1990):32-33. The mo
tives of Cuba's attitude in the United Nations General Assembly were
analyzed by Ignacio Klich, "Cuba and the Partition of Palestine: A
Contribution to the History of Latin America's Single 'No' to Jewish
Statehood," unpublished manuscript.
Abraham J.Dubleman,
"Cuba," American Jewish Year Book, LI (1950),
"President
Batista Lauds Cuba's
pp. 260-264;
Immigrants for Three
Decades
of Contribution," Rescue (Winter 1952), p. 15.
Interviews: Jose Lurie, Miami, 1984; Aron Yuken, Miami, 1987; Israel
Luski, Miami, 1984; Bernardo Benes, Miami, 1987; Max Lesnick, Mi
ami,
1984.
16.
Joshua Hochstein, "20 Years Ago in Jewish Havana," Havaner Lebn,
January 4 and 18, 1935 (Yiddish); David Blis, "Memories of Jewish
Life in Havana," Havaner Lebn, November 22 and 29, 1935 (Yiddish);
United Hebrew Congregation Temple Beth Israel, Golden Anniversary
1906-1956 (Havana, 1956), pp. 4, 9-10.
17.
"The Jews in Cuba,"
The American Hebrew,
George Weinberger,
Boris
The
Jewish Community of Cuba (New
Sapir,
February 8, 1918;
14-15.
York, 1948), pp.
A. Misbir,
"Cartas de Cuba",
Blis,
20, 1921; David
Israel, May
"Memories," Havaner Lebn, May 29, 1936; Harry Viteles, "Report on
the Status of the Jewish Immigration in Cuba" (February 1925), pp. 13,
21, 66-68 (typewritten).
18.
Israel (Buenos Aires, August 1926).
"De la Habana,"
to
Administrator of today's Adath Is
Abraham
Berezniak,
According
rael Congregation, five Jewish cemeteries still exist in Cuba: in Cam
aguey, Santa Clara, Camajuani, Banes, and the El Cobre cemetery in
Santiago de Cuba.
19. Moises
20.
Mitrani,
138Margalit
Bejarano
the early history of the Sephardic community of Cuban, see M. Be
jarano, "Los sefaradim, pioneros de la inmigracion judia a Cuba," Rum
bos, 14 (October 1985):107-122.
21.
On
22.
The most comprehensive source on the Eastern European Jewish immi
grants for the years 1921-1925 is Harry Vitales' "Report," op. cit.; it
is followed by a report by the Director of the Jewish Committee for
Cuba, covering the years 1925-1927. (A copy of these reports is kept at
Institute of Contemporary
the Department of Demography,
Jewry,
Hebrew University.)
23.
Sapir, op. cit., pp. 27-31; Sender Kaplan,
Havaner Lebn Almanaque (1943):13-19
24.
Sapir, op. cit., pp. 66-67; A. Eliezer, "The JewishWorker and the Kul
tur Farain," Oyfgang (August-September 1934) (Yiddish).
"Acta de constitucion del Partido Comunista de Cuba," in Hortensia
Pitchardo, Documentos para la Historia de Cuba, III (Havana, 1973),
"The Rise and Fall of a Party, the
pp. 299-301; Boris Goldenberg,
Cuban
CP
Problems of Communism
(1925-1959),"
(July-August
1970):61-80.
25.
26.
"Jews in Cuban
(Yiddish).
Economic Life,
Grobart refused to be interviewed by the author, claiming that he had
never had contacts with the Jewish
community. A book dedicated to
Grobart on his 80th birthday does not mention his Hebrew name ?
Abraham Simchowitch. Fabio Grobart, Un forjador eternamente joven
(Havana, 1985). See also Boris Kozolchyk, The Political Biographies
1966), pp. 1-14; interviews:
of Three Castro Officials (Santa Monica,
David Utiansky, Tel Aviv, 1981; Osher Schuchinsky, Miami, 1984.
27.
Surveys on the Jewish institutions that functioned in Cuba are to be
found in "The History of the Jews in Cuba," Der Grundstein (Havana,
1951), pp. 30-53 (Yiddish), as well as in the yearly Almanaque de la
Vida Habanera
(1943-1960).
28.
For a history of the Zionist movement
in Cuba, see Haim Shiniuk,
"The Development
of the Zionist Movement
in Cuba," Havaner Lebn
(1943):131-147
(Yiddish).
Almanaque
29.
Interviews: David Utiansky, Aron Yuken, Osher Schuchinsky, Eliezer
Aronovsky. One example of the Zionist transformation was the direc
tor of the Jewish day school of the Centro Israelita who was
formerly
a Bundist; his attitude had its
impact on the school's policy.
30.
31.
32.
33.
Rose Klepfisz and Emil Lang, Annotated Catalogue of the Archives of
the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee 1933-1944, p. 192.
Thomas and Witts, op. cit., pp. 78-81; Yehuda Bauer, My Brother's
1974), pp. 287-288.
Keeper (Philadelphia,
Edward Hochhauser,
"Report on Short Study of Situation of Refugees
in Havana"
(February 1939), JDC 506.
The number includes 922 on board the St. Louis, 132 on board the
French "Flandre," and 72 on board the English "Orduna." For bibliog
raphy, see note 12 above.
The JewishCommunityofCuba 139
34.
Zariz, op. cit., pp. 291-292. Interviews: N. Solowiejczyk, Tel Aviv,
1981; Paul and Maurice Kaufman, New York, 1987; Antonio Bergos,
New York, 1987.
35.
Chiel Morgenstein, New York,
Interviews: Nahman
Solowiejczyk;
1987. For literary accounts of refugee immigration from Belgium to
(New York,
Cuba, see Felicia Rosshandler, Passing Through Havana
1984); Yeshayahu Austridan, Chofim (Tel Aviv, 1985) (Hebrew).
36.
Max Azicri,
193.
37.
Maurice
The Taming of Fidel Castro (Berkeley, 1981), p.
Halperin,
239. Interviews: Max Lesnick, Miami, 1984; Bernardo Benes, Miami,
1987. The most important activist of the Agrupacion Cultural was
Marcus Matterin, editor of Hebraica, who founded and directed the
Patronato's library until his death in 1983.
38.
Kaplan toMalat, February 28, 1955; Kessari toMalat, March 14, 1955,
Israel State Archives [ISA], 2578/21; Kessary Report on Visit to Cuba,
October 26-31, 1955, ISA 2571/6; Consejo Plenario Sionista, Cuba-Is
rael (Havana, 1954).
39.
Jorge Garcia Montes served during World War II as the lawyer of the
JDC and was very devoted to the Jewish refugees. For a report on the
inauguration ceremony, see Prensa Libre, October 25, 1955, pp. 1, 15.
Dionisio Castiel, "Una charla con el Arquitecto y los miembros del
La Piedra Fundamental (Der Gruntstein)
Comite de Construccion,"
34-42.
(Havana, 1951), pp.
40.
41.
Cuba Politics, Economics and Society (London,
1988), p.
Adath Israel and Knesseth Israel were reunited into one kehilla in
?
one group reorga
1948. After long inner struggles they split again
Patronato.
the
Adath
and
the
second
Israel
joining
nizing
42.
Haim Yaari to Ministry of Foreign Affairs, "A Report on the Condi
tion of Cuban Jews," January 1964 (Hebrew). (A copy was given to this
to Cuba in 1963-65.) For
author by Haim Yaari, Israel's Ambassador
other causes for emigration from Cuba, see Moises Asis, "Cuban Jewry
during Thirty Years of Revolution," Yahadut Zemanenu, 6 (Jerusalem,
1990), p. 326 (Hebrew). (The Spanish version of the article was pub
lished in Coloquio, 22 [Buenos Aires, 1989].)
43.
Patterns of Prejudice, op. cit., p. 40; Halperin,
Bejarano,
242. Interview: Moshe Baldas, Tel Aviv, 1982.
44.
Baldas; Yaari, "Report," op. cit.
to Cuba 1960-63,
Dr.
to
Jonathan Prato, Israel's Ambassador
According
the arrangement was achieved following his petition to the Cuban
Secretary of Education.
45.
46.
47.
op. cit., p.
Interview: Moshe
Interview: Moshe
Baldas.
Israel-Latin American
Edy Kaufman, Yoram Shapira, Joel Barromi,
Relations (New Brunswick, 1959), pp. 10-12; Halperin, op. cit., 241
244; David J.Kopilow, Castro, Israel and thePLO (The Cuba-American
National Foundation, 1984), p. 17. Ricardo Subirana y Lobo (Richard
140Margalit
Bejarano
a German Jewish chemist who settled in Cuba and was a
generous supporter of the revolutionary movement; he is the founder
of theWolf Fund (see "Ricardo Wolf/' Ma'ariv, May 12, 1988).
Halperin, op. cit., pp. 249-254; Azicri, p. 193; Kopilow, pp. 17-26.
Wolf) was
48.
49.
50.
Asis, pp. 334-336; interview with Moshe Baldas.
A collection of cartoons against Begin may be found in David Kopilow,
cit.,
op.
pp.
22-23.
52.
M. Abbas
La otra cara: la verdad de las relaciones sec
(Abu Mazzen),
retas entre el nazismo y el sionismo (Havana,
1987).
336-337.
Asis, pp.
53.
Kopilow,
54.
Azicri,
55.
Carmelo Alvarez, Cuba, testimonies y vivencias de un proceso revolu
tionary (San Jose, 1989), in particular the interview with Carneado,
1990.
pp. 19-48. Interviews: M. Baldas; JoseMiller, Havana,
The following section is based mainly on observations made during
the author's visit to Havana
(October 5-November 4, 1990).
51.
56.
57.
Asis,
58.
Ibid.
59.
Interview
60.
Ibid.
61.
op. cit., p. 26.
p. 193-194.
op. cit., pp. 328-329.
with
Abraham
Berezniak.
fees are 1 peso per month; Adath Israel has 150 listed
Membership
members and the Patronato 120 (data supplied by Miller and Berez
niak).
62.
"Jose Miller,"
in Carmelo Alvarez,
op. cit., pp. 119-120.

the jewish community of cuba: between continuity and extinction

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