UNIVERSITY OF LATVIA FACULTY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES
DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY
“NO ME QUEDA NADA” (I DON’T HAVE ANYTHING LEFT): HOW TRANSNATIONAL TIES SHAPE IDENTITY CONSCTRUCTION
IN THE SENDING COMMUNITY
MASTER THESIS
Erasmus Mundus Master in Migration and Social Cohesion - MISOCO -
Author: Berit Anna Coffin Engstrom
University of Latvia Student ID card No: be14003
Supervisor University of Latvia: Dr. Baiba Bela
Second Reader University of Amsterdam: Dr. Walter Nicholls Third Reader University of Deusto: Dr. Andrea Ruiz Balzola
RIGA May 2015
Abstract: This study endeavors to understand how transnational ties affect identity construction of individuals in the sending community of Havana, Cuba. Often in migration studies the focus is solely on the emigrant’s experience, however transnationalism includes both emigrants and sending community members. The emigration and social history of Cuba provide an understanding for the specific context of this study of social and personal change in Havana. Transnationalism and identity construction form the theoretical framework for the research. Qualitative research methods including oral history interviews and participant observation were used in the collection of data. The analysis demonstrates that transnational ties between family and friends impacts identity construction and leads individuals to change their day-to-day lives, their view of the world, and their plans and hopes for the future.
Keywords: Transnationalism, identity, sending community, storytelling, emigration
Anotācija:
Pētījums cenšas saprast, kā transnacionālās saites ietekmē indivīdu identitātes konstruēšanu palicēju kopienā Havanā, Kubā. Migrācijas pētījumos bieži aplūkoti tikai emigranti, tomēr transnacionālisms ietver gan izbraucējus, gan palicējus. Kubas emigrācijas un sociālā vēsture palīdz saprast kontekstu pētījumam par sociālajām un personiskajām pārmaiņām. Pētījuma konceptuālo ietvaru veido teorijas par transnacionālismu un identitātes konstruēšanu. Pētījumā lietotas kvalitatīvās pētījumu metodes, kā mutvārdu vēstures intervijas un līdzdalības novērojums. Analīze liecina, ka transnacionālās saiknes starp ģimeni un draugiem ietekmē identitātes konstruēšanu un rezultātā cilvēki maina savu ikdienas ikdienas dzīvi, pasaules uzskatus, kā arī savus nākotnes plānus un cerības.
Table of Contents
Introduction………5
Chapter 1: Framing the research: transnationalism and identity…………..…...9
1.1 Transnationalism………9
1.2 Identity and migration……….…….14
1.3 Identity and transnationalism………..…...17
Chapter 2: Historical context……….21
2.1 Cuban history……….………..21
2.2 History of Cuban emigration since 1959………. …...22
2.3 Transnationalism in the Cuban context……….………...24
2.4 Identity in the Cuban context………..……….27
2.5 What will be gained from studying identity and transnationalism in the Cuban context………...28
Chapter 3: Methodology………30
3.1 Oral history………..……30
3.2 Oral history and identity construction……….….34
3.3 Research site and period……….……..……...35
3.4 Research techniques………..………...36
3.4.1Oral history interviews………...…...………....37
3.4.2 Field notes….………..….………..…….40
3.4.3 Participant observation...………..………..…….40
Chapter 4: Transnational ties and their influence on identity formation………...46
4.1 “Transnationalism from below” and “Site of political engagement”…...47
4.1.1 Cuban political and economic periods since 1959………....48
4.1.2 How transnational ties affect interviewees’ relationships to local politics and economics………..………52
4.2 “Avenue of capital”: remittances and identity……….…...57
4.2.1 Remittances and gift giving from family and friends living abroad ………...….57
4.2.2 How remittances and gift giving affect identity construction……...59
4.3 “(Re)construction of ‘place’ or locality”: Cuba and identity…….………...61
4.4 “Social morphology”: identity, gender, and career………...65
4.5 “Type of consciousness”: identity and friendship…………..…..…………...69
Chapter 5: Emigration journeys: storytelling and Cuban identity ………....72
5.1 Storytelling in the social sciences………...……...73
5.2 Stories and identity………..74
Conclusion………..…...82
Bibliography……….….87
Introduction
Traveling to Cuba, one discovers quickly that almost everyone has a friend or family member who lives abroad. I have been spending time in Cuba since 2007 when I studied abroad in Havana for four months. Since then, I have returned numerous times and I have come to know Cuban culture well.
In December 2013, I was at the art opening of a friend and I was introduced to a young woman named Ana. We began talking and she explained that she was studying film and that she hoped to be a film director in the future. We started talking about family and friends and she mentioned that her two best friends had recently left Cuba for the United States, and that it was very hard on her emotionally. Even though she maintains strong transnational ties with her two best friends and misses having them in her life in day-to-day interactions, she plans to stay in Cuba. Ana added that since she plans to be a film director she never wants to leave Cuba, believing that she must produce art and films in the culture and place that she knows best, her home. Ana told me these beliefs with some sadness, repeatedly mentioning that her friends had left and that she gets anxiety about being in relationships because she always has fear that her partner might decide to leave the country. Still, she made it clear that she feels a sense of belonging within Cuba as a geographical place and culture. This conversation sparked my interest in understanding more about the affects of transnational ties on the social processes of identity construction of those individuals who stay in their home country, as members of the sending community. Based on my personal experience in Cuba, I knew that Ana was not an unusual case.
In my thesis research, I investigate social processes of identity construction of people living in the sending community of Havana, Cuba. The goals of this study are to understand how the flow of Cuban emigrants over the past fifty years, which has led to the development of strong transnational community ties, influences the identities of those who stay behind. While looking at how transnational ties have affected social processes of identity construction, I specifically explore how storytelling reveals the role emigration has played in identity construction of those Cubans who have stayed in Cuba.
This research has the potential to make an important contribution to transnational scholarship, as there is little research on how sending community members’ identities are affected by transnational ties. In general, transnational research on identity focuses on the identity of people who themselves have emigrated and how they adjust to the receiving nation and its culture (Góis, 2010). My research investigates the processes of identity construction of individuals in the sending community. Additionally, this research helps define the evolving identity of Cubans as the impact of transnational ties becomes a more and more significant part of Cuban society. Transnationalism has long been a part of Cuba’s history but it is distinct today because of the scale at which it is taking place as a result of the changing political climate both internally within Cuba and externally with the beginning of a diplomatic relationship with the United States. In the last thirty years, changes in governmental policies have allowed emigrants to return to Cuba more freely, for individuals to visit their family abroad, and for an increase in long-distance communication through cell phones and Internet. Cuba’s transnational community has and continues to grow (Duany, 2005, p. 171).
Though there are studies on Cuban identity of Cubans living abroad, there are no studies looking at Cuban identity within sending communities. This research seeks to fill that gap in the literature and focuses on individuals who have never left Cuba but have significant ties to those who have left. In the end, not only will this research shine light on Havana, Cuba’s sending community, but it will also address in general the much broader gap in the literature of how transnational ties affect sending community identity construction. The findings of this research specific to sending community identity in Havana, Cuba are a base for comparison and understanding of the processes of identity construction in sending communities in other parts of the world.
Using a sociological perspective, this research combines theory on transnationalism and identity, to understand how transnational ties affect the social processes of identity construction of Cubans living in the sending community of Havana. Individuals in Havana, Cuba are the unit of analysis. Empirical research was conducted using qualitative methods including oral history interviews and participant observation
This thesis is organized into five chapters. Chapter 1, “Framing the Research: Transnationalism and Identity” reviews published literature on transnationalism and identity in the context of migration studies. Chapter 2, “Historical Context” gives a brief history of Cuba, followed by a more detailed history of emigration since the 1959 Castro Revolution. After discussing the history of emigration in Cuba, this chapter looks at transnationalism in the Cuban context, followed by identity in the Cuban context. Lastly, the significance of the study is addressed by describing what can be gained from this research. Chapter 3, “Methodology”, describes the research methods and methods of analysis used in this study. The section discusses oral histories as a type of interview
methodology, including a review of the evolution of oral history as a data collection method in the social sciences. The research site and research period are described as well as the different qualitative research methods employed – oral history interviews, field notes, and participant observation. Following the description of the research methods is an explanation of how coding and analysis were conducted. Lastly, a discussion of the limitations of this study are acknowledged. Chapter 4, “Transnational ties and their influence on identity formation” and Chapter 5, “Emigration journeys: storytelling and Cuban identity” are dedicated to the analysis and the interpreting of the research data. Chapter 4 uses concepts of transnationalism theory as a framework for analyzing the content of the oral history interviews, and Chapter 5 explores the meaning of stories and storytelling.
Chapter 1: Framing the Research: transnationalism and identity
This research investigates the social processes of identity construction of people living in the sending community of Havana, Cuba and how transnational ties affect their identity construction. The purpose of this study is to understand how the large flow of emigration from the sending community of Havana, Cuba, has led to transnational ties, and how they in turn influence the identities of those who stay behind. In this chapter the terms, transnationalism and identity are discussed, beginning with the history of these concepts, as well as their present day definitions. Following the history and definitions of these terms, I focus on their role within the academic discipline of Migration Studies and a comparative analysis of transnationalism and identity as a theoretical framework. By understanding the role these concepts play in Migration Studies and the value of different approaches when applying these terms, it will become clear why certain perspectives on transnationalism and identity are used in this research.
1.1 Transnationalism
Transnationalism is a field of study that emerged in the early 20th century, but gained attention, and began to be used across disciplines in the social sciences starting in the late 1970s (Guarnizo & Smith, 1998, p. 4). The field of transnationalism was still an emerging field in the late 1990s, and continues to evolve in its use in academia and in the public sphere (Portes et al., 1999, p. 218). It was in this time period that transnationalism began to be applied to the understanding of migration and migratory patterns (Góis, 2010, p. 260). In the last decade transnationalism has been used interchangeably with the terms international, multinational, and even postnational, and like globalization runs the risk of
being overused (Suarez Navaz, 2008, p. 912). There are many definitions of transnationalism so it is important to be explicit about the meaning of transnationalism used in this study. In order to understand the different definitions of transnationalism and their usefulness as analytical tools, a careful review of Vertovec’s (1999) article “Conceiving and Researching Transnationalism” is important.
Vertovec defines transnationalism by describing the term in the context of social, economic and political processes. He begins by providing a general definition of transnationalism as “multiple ties and interactions linking people or institutions across the borders of nation-states” (1999, p.91), and then describes specific concepts that give context to transnationalism as a useful theoretical framework. The six concepts include, “Mode of cultural reproduction”, “Avenue of capital”, “Site of political engagement”, “(Re)construction of ‘place’ or locality”, “Social morphology”, and “Type of consciousness” (p. 91). Some of these concepts are more applicable than others when researching people’s identity in relation to transnationalism, however, they are all useful to understanding transnationalism and its theoretical underpinnings.
One of Vertovec’s concepts is “Mode of cultural reproduction,” and embodies the social processes brought about by transnationalism in the realm of day-to-day life. Here he describes how transnationalism can be used to study the power of the media and technology in disseminating information across country borders. He shows how influential transnational ties can be in the transfer of fashion, literature, music, and art from one culture to another. People of different ethnic groups adopt cultural customs (or norms) from all over the world in defining themselves (p. 95-96). Though Vertovec is referring to immigrants in his article, this research seeks to understand whether these
trends apply to those in the sending community. Looking less at the cultural aspects and more at the economic impacts of transnationalism Vertovec describes another concept, called “Avenue of capital” (1999, p. 96). This concept is considered a more institutional interpretation of transnationalism because it concentrates on the impact of transnational corporations and the interests of people who make up the socioeconomic elite and whose decisions dominate the world economy. This concept addresses the impact of remittances sent from migrants back to their families and communities (p. 96-98). The impact of remittances can be huge. In Chapter 2, the impact of remittances sent to Cuba will be addressed.
Vetovec’s concept “Site of political engagement,” provides context for the way transnationalism affects politics and the larger geo-political relationships that influence world order. Here he explains how transnationalism creates a space that does not necessarily fit into the politics of the nation-state, for example, the formation of international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) or new branches of government (p. 98-100). Addressing not politics, but place is Vertovec’s concept, “(Re)construction of ‘place’ or locality” (p. 100). In this concept the implications of a transnational lifestyle are addressed in relation to the individual’s connection to geographic places and their relationship to the land. He explains that transnationalism has led people to have less concrete ties to specific geographic locations (p. 100-101).
Vertovec’s concept, “Social morphology,” (p. 93-94) looks at ethnic diasporas and how the presence of large groups of the same ethnicity living abroad influence their homelands, and the new countries within which they reside. What it means to be “ethnic” is part of this concept. This conceptualization of transnationalism focuses on networks
between migrants and their homelands and how these transnational ties transcend borders and affect larger political structures (Vertovec, 1999, p. 93-94). Though all of Vertovec’s concepts are overlapping and complicated in their application in research, the most important concept in evaluating how transnationalism affects identity is “Type of consciousness” (p. 94). This concept demonstrates how transnationalism can be used as a theoretical framework from which to explore individuals’ identities. Vertovec shows how immigrants can have multiple identities and that they hold their communities together by creating a shared imagination and holding onto important cultural practices from their home countries. He argues that this concept provides a basis from which to understand how transnational ties and diasporas can have significant power in changing the way people think and thus, their identity. In the discussion of this concept, he puts forth the idea that this shared consciousness can lead to large changes in people’s everyday lives, and the social structures with which they surround themselves.
Though not included in Vertovec’s themes, another dimension of transnationalism, is how it influences social change through the everyday lived experiences of people who have transnational ties. This is referred to as transnationalism-from-below. “Transnationalism-from-below generates multiple and counter-hegemonic powers among non-elites. It is the creation of a new social space --- one spanning at least two nations – that is fundamentally grounded in the daily lives, activities, and social relationships of quotidian actors” (Mahler, 1998, p. 66-67). Transnationalism-from-below describes “the ways that the everyday practices of ordinary people, their feelings and understandings of their conditions of existence, often modify those very conditions and thereby shape rather than merely reflect new modes or urban culture” (Smith, 1992, p.
493-4).
There are a number of critics of the concept of transnationalism-from-below. One criticism states that transnationalism-from-below was made on normative assumptions of justice based on the political perspectives of the academics that came up with the concept. Another critique feels that by focusing on forms of resistance to global capitalism, transnationalism-from-below ignores other spaces created by transnational communities (Suarez Navaz, 2008, p. 10). In my own research, I use the concept of transnationalism-from-below not only to pay attention to forms of resistance in Cuban identities, but also to identify any aspects of identity construction that have been sculpted by the day-to-day life of Cubans affected by transnational ties. Whether or not the way sending communities of Cubans live is subversive is something that will be discovered through my research. Importantly, it will be through their daily lives and the way they describe their situations that will shine light on the character of transnational ties in Cuba. As is clear from the above discussion of Vertovec’s six concepts describing transnationalism and Guaranizo and Smith’s concept of “transnationalism from below” (1998), transnationalism is a concept that embodies a diversity of perspectives. To date, most of the research conducted on transnationalism and identity has looked at migrant identities and how migrants change and evolve in their host country. There are fewer studies and little published literature looking at the sending community, the community from which emigrates leave, and how transnational ties affect people who do not emigrate. Pedro Góis addresses this gap in the literature in his article published in 2010 about Cape Verdeans.
impact of emigration on the identity of those who leave, but also of those who stay in the sending community. Góis describes the creation of a “new deterritorialised transnational identity,” (p. 259), that represents not only those who emigrate, but also those people who stay behind. This article addresses the fact that, “in traditional sending countries…research on emigration has focused mainly on contexts of departure, return conditions and issues of split families” (Góis, 2010, p. 259). This is a problematic approach because instead of looking at the sending community and the receiving community as overlapping and as influencing one another, it separates these communities into two distinct realities. Wimmer and Glick Schiller (2002) have called this type of approach “methodological nationalism”, because it separates instead of compares transnational phenomena. In many studies of transnationalism the receiving societies are the only communities upon which research is conducted, but without comparing the results of these studies with what is going on in the home communities, they do not have value as they are not encompassing the whole dimension of transnationalism (Góis, 2010, p. 261). My research has been designed to build on previous research that has focused on Cuban’s who have emigrated to the United States by studying how emigration has affected the people in the sending communities.
1.2 Identity and migration
Identity as a theoretical concept in the social sciences saw widespread use starting in the 1970s. It became accepted as “a distinctive characteristic of certain socio-cultural categories, like race, gender, ethnicity, nationality, that make up a complex code through which the belonging to a certain group was recognized” (Moreno Feliú, 2010, p. 234).
The rise of the use of identity in the academic world did not mean that this was a new concept, but it was in the 1970s that it gained traction and by the late 1970s it was used commonly in public discourse in both politics and the media. Like transnationalism, the concept of identity has been used widely and interpreted in multiple ways. Because of its wide use both in the academy and the public its meaning can be vague and misinterpreted (Moreno Feliú, 2010, p. 235). Thus, when conducting research involving the use of identity it is important to define its meaning in the context of the specific research project.
In their recent article, “What are We talking About When We Talk About Identities?”, José and Susana Bastos (2010) deconstruct identity as a term and a theoretical perspective in the social sciences. Their article is dedicated to understanding the history of identity as a theoretical perspective and its use today in the fields of anthropology and sociology. They conclude that identity is fluid and ever evolving and that there is no one singular definition, but go on to describe four core elements of identity. These core elements include: a) cognitive issues – similarity vs. difference, an internalization of cognitive categories based on oppositions; b) issues of elaboration – internal synthesis of external and individual contradictions and dispersions (contextual, ideological, etc); c) moral issues – the widespread development of a double standard of ethics in inter-ethnic relations; and d) emotional issues – feelings of superiority, value, loss of value or inferiority, all of which are dependent on the selection of the criteria for comparison and competitivity, whether negotiated or imposed, favourable or unfavourable (Bastos & Bastos, 2010, p. 334).
identity is highly subjective and heavily influenced by cultural context and history. A concept that involves emotions, morals and individual contradictions, cannot be described easily. The research of this study builds on Bastos’ description of identity as a subjective analytical tool. Moreno Feliú interprets identity similarly, “cultural identities – ethnicity, class, gender – are not things, rather their substance lies in the changing social relations that guide them” (2010, p. 235). The use of identity as a social process shaped by culture will be the foundation of the way identity is discussed and evaluated in this research.
Identity as a theoretical concept is criticized by some scholars, like Jones and Kryzanowski (2011) due to its “lack of theoretical rigor and precision that so often accompanies its use” (p. 38). To avoid falling into using identity as a concept without precision, this research will approach identity as Sorensen did in her research on the identity of transnational migrants in the Dominican Republic. Sorensen provides precision in her research by looking at identity through the lens of transnational ties, and by understanding identity construction through personal narratives. Using the framework of transnationalism provides a way to analyze the “lived and fluid experiences of individuals who act in ways that challenge our previous conflation of geographic space and social identity” (Basch et al., 1994, p. 8). In this case, my research seeks to understand how the identity of Cubans, who may have traveled abroad, but who have never emigrated from Cuba, are affected by the transnational ties they maintain outside of Cuba. In order to give context as to why Sorensen’s approach was chosen for this research, an overview of different theoretical perspectives about identity and transnationalism are discussed herein.
1.3 Identity and transnationalism
The literature on transnationalism focuses on the identity of migrants and how they are affected by living in different countries and different cultures. In their article, “Transnational Social Networks and Negotiated Identities in Interactions Between Hong Kong and China,” Alan Smart and Josephine Smart show how migrants create their identity. They explain that migrants who leave China and then return to have businesses there do not necessarily show obvious public support of their homeland, but that “solidarity with China involves cultural identification, focus on the compatibility of the pursuit of economic self-interest and the strengthening of China, and emphasis on subnational identities” (Smart, 1998, p. 113). This research on China shows that transnational identity is often shaped by new economic possibilities and changing social and socioeconomic positions, as well as new identifications with subnational identities that they may not have valued or identified with before leaving. Though this article focuses on transnational identity in the case of Chinese migrants, with an emphasis on business and economics as agents for change, there are other aspects of transnationalism that affect identity formation.
In the work of Nina Glick Schiller and Georges Fouron (1998) formation of new political and ethnic identities are studied among Haitian migrants through a transnational lens. In their article, “Transnational Lives and National Identities: The Identity Politics of Haitian Immigrants”, they show how Haitian immigrants in Canada and the United States gain new perspectives about ethnicity and politics upon reaching their host countries. This in turn affects those left behind, as transnational ties are not unidirectional. This analysis is made clear in the following statement.
Family ties bind in both directions: those left behind in Haiti depend on money sent from abroad and on food and goods brought on return visits; those who live the precarious life of immigrants in societies that function and revolve around nefarious racial and ethnic ideologies look to Haiti to provide periodic solace to their often harsh living conditions and secure for them a home base in case they are unable to continue to live in their immigrant milieu (Schiller & Fouron, 1998, p. 140)
Clearly the new processes of identity formation that immigrants face in their host countries, also affects the home country and its people, as is addressed in this description of Haitian family bonds. Still, the changes in identity formation in migrants go beyond politics and ethnicity and include a much larger range of social phenomena. As Pedro Góis says in his exploration of identity among Cape Verdean migrants, “these migrants and their descendants influence changes in both communities and places of belonging through their social or economic remittances as well as transnational, political, cultural and social practices” (Góis, 2010, p. 263). These examples of research on transnational migrant identity show that identity formation affects both the migrants who leave as well as the people left behind in the sending communities. Even though these examples of research on transnational migrant identity make clear that the identity of people in sending communities is affected, there is an overall lack of research on identity processes in sending communities.
Another example, mentioned earlier in this chapter is the research on transnational identity by Nina Sorensen (1998) in her article, Narrating Identity Across Dominican Worlds. The research studies cited thus far fit with Sorensen’s approach to researching
transnational identity. In her research Sorensen describes the identity of transnational migrants in the Dominican Republic, “identities by themselves do not exist. Identity is constructed by identity narratives ‘which attempt at imagining communities to lock up human groups within fantasmatic boundaries’ but also to transgress them. Identity narratives cannot be understood as expressions of social or cultural homogeneity” (Sorensen, 1998, p. 246). In this statement Sorensen makes clear that identities are made by the individuals that possess them and that through personal narratives and interviews comes the possibility to understand how identities are formed by these very people. She also makes clear that these narratives, or personal accounts, cannot become generalizations that speak on behalf of the whole culture or context, but are unique examples of identity construction. These ideas are also representative of the Cuban situation I encountered in my research, each Cuban has a unique relationship to transnational ties and, in turn, their identity is uniquely constructed. By interviewing Cubans in Havana who have transnational ties, there is an opportunity to understand how these ties to the outside affect the personal identity construction of these individuals in the sending community.
The literature suggests that by bringing together the theoretical dimensions of transnationalism and identity, there may arise an opportunity to identify transnational ties as having a liberating affect on individuals’ identity. Smith brings forward this argument:
The reprocessing of identity by those who once saw their lives as more or less predictably constrained by the givenness of established orders may produce new emancipatory social movements with a high degree of political efficacy (Smith, 1994, p. 31).
The possibility for Cuban’s to experience emancipatory change through transnational ties in part depends on their personal history and the historic identity of their community. Thus, it is important to evaluate the history of Cuban identity construction before evaluating the changes brought about by transnational ties. Still, it is clear from the research on transnational identity that has been conducted worldwide that transnational identity transcends boundaries and encompasses elements not traditionally thought of as related to identity construction. As Góis (2010) described in his research on Cape Verdeans, “transnational migrants and their descendants refuse to confine their identity exclusively to the social references of the space in which they reside” (p. 263). The goal of my research is to understand how statements like Góis, found throughout the body of literature on the identity of transnational migrants, extends to identity formation of people from sending communities.
Chapter 2: Historical context
In order to understand transnational ties in Cuba today and how this affects Cuban identity, it is important to understand its historical context. The following chapter discusses Cuban history and Cuban identity. First, a general timeline of Cuban history is reviewed including the context for how Cuba changed from a country of immigration to a country of emigration since the Castro Revolution in 1959. Following the discussion of Cuban emigration is a section on the evolution of communication between Cubans and the outside world since the revolution and how that affects transnational ties and issues of identity. Finally, there will be a reflection on the significance of studying identity and transnationalism in Cuban sending communities and how it contributes to literature on the topic.
2.1 Cuban history
Until the beginning of the twentieth century Cuba was a country of immigrants. Immigrants came from Europe, mostly Spain, as well as slaves from Africa and Asia. Throughout the first thirty years of the twentieth century Cuba continued to receive immigrants. In large part they came from Spain and the Antilles. Between 1930 and 1959, a time of political unrest and poor economic conditions, immigration to Cuba slowed (Barroso, 1995, p. 51). Beginning in the 1930s, Cuba became a country of emigration (Fernández et al, 2007, p. 140). Later, following the triumph of the Revolution of Fidel Castro in 1959 new emigration patterns emerged punctuated by peak periods of emigration due to Cuban policy, American policy and economic conditions. Hundreds of thousands of Cubans have left the Island in the last few decades. Between 1959 and 1999,
over one million Cubans emigrated (Aja Díaz, 2002, p. 5). More recently, between 1995 and 2003 there have been some 280,000 Cubans who have emigrated, some legally and some illegally (Fernández et al, 2007, p. 168).
Since 1959, the majority of Cubans who emigrated from Cuba ended up settling in the United States. According to an article published by the Center of International Migration Studies in Havana, some 1.7 million Cubans (and their descendants) lived outside of Cuba in 2007. Of the approximately 1.7 million Cubans living outside of Cuba approximately 1,446,600 live in North America. According to the United Nation World Population Prospects, in 2007 there were 11,292,078 Cubans living in Cuba, so approximately 15% of the Cuba population was living outside of Cuba (World Bank, 2015). Cuba’s population is declining. In 2014, the World Bank reported a decrease of about 23,000 individuals (World Bank, 2015). Cubans have emigrated to other parts of the world too, “there are 119,916 in Europe; 84,715 in South America; 35,943 in Central America; 14,302 in the Caribbean; and in the regions of Africa and Asia, there are only 3,288 Cubans” (Fernández et al., 2007, p.141).
2.2 History of Cuban emigration since 1959
The thousands of emigrants who have left Cuba since the Castro revolution of 1959 is telling in itself but it is important to look closely at the socio-political times of these periods of emigration to understand the perspective of the emigrants and the impact on the individuals that have remained in the sending community. In general, there is consensus that Cuban emigration in the second half of the 20th century can be defined by
three distinct periods of emigration. For consistency in this study, I have adopted Eckstein’s (2009) definitions of the historic waves of Cuban emigration.
Eckstein (2009) divides the waves of Cuban emigrants into three main categories: “Exile cohort”, “Marielitos” and “New Cubans” (p. 2-3). The “Exile cohort” are those Cubans who were born before the Castro revolution and left Cuba because they opposed the new Castro regime. This group left Cuba in the first years after the Revolution; approximately 225,330 Cubans emigrated in the first three years (p. 12). The Cubans who made up the “Exile cohort” were largely upper class, white, Catholic, and did not support Castro. Also, there were more woman who emigrated than men (p. 15-22).
Making up a very different sector of the Cuban population were the “Marielitos,” who left Cuba when Castro allowed any Cuban who so desired to leave without an exit visa. This emigration occurred in 1980. Approximately 125,000 Cubans left. They were called “Marielitos” because they left from the Cuban port of Mariel. The demographics of the Cubans who left as “Marielitos” were very distinct. The “Marielitos” represented mostly people from lower classes, people of mixed race and more men than woman unlike the demographics of the “Exile cohort” (p. 23-28).
The third wave of emigrants leaving Cuba were those Eckstein refers to as the “New Cubans” (p.29). These were people who left after the “Special Period in Peacetime,” (p.29), the name for the countrywide depression that occurred after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. The “New Cubans” were largely economic migrants who left seeking better opportunities to support themselves and their families. Most of the “New Cuban” emigrants were young people in prime working age, more men than women, and often they left alone without their families but with the intention to help
their families economically (p. 29-36). These three waves of Cuban emigrants were distinct and the transnational ties that they have maintained has been very much influenced by the group of which they were a part. This was true not only because of their political and ideological perspectives, but because of the laws imposed by both Cuba and the United States during different eras (Eckstein, 2009).
Even though the “Marielitos” and “New Cuban” emigration waves were populated with people of lower-class, and mixed race, the majority of Cubans who left identified themselves as white. Judging by the United States Census figures, between the early 1960s through the 1990s, at least 80% of the Cuban’s who emigrated identified as white, and often times that percentage was much higher (in the mid-to-high 90th percentile) (Eckstein, 2009, p. 19).
2.3 Transnationalism in the Cuban context
The different socio-political eras that defined the characteristics of each wave of emigrants have impacted the transnational ties that Cubans and Cuban Americans have maintained. In her book, Eckstein uses a historically based, generational thesis to describe the patterns of transnational ties between Cuban Americans and Cubans. During the first three decades of the revolution (1959-1989) transnational ties were difficult to maintain and discouraged not only by law, but also by the beliefs and actions of the people on both sides of the Florida Straits. Both pro-revolution Cubans in Cuba and anti-Castro Cuban Americans in the United States felt strongly that they did not want contact with their neighbors only 90 miles away. Later, with the collapse of the Soviet Union (1991) that led to a depression in Cuba, the ‘special period’, transnational ties were much
expanded both by laws and by the beliefs and actions of the people (Eckstein, 2009, p. 178-206).
From 1959-1989 there were very limited transnational ties between Cubans and the outside world. During these years telephone calls were unreliable, expensive and the connections were not clear. Mail was unreliable as well and both phone calls and mail were sometimes intercepted. There were official barriers that contributed to the strained transnational ties as well. For example, remittances were controlled by both the United States (in how much could be sent) and Cuba (charging service fees for remittances received). In addition, the dollar was illegal in Cuba, so remittances could not easily be used even if they arrived. Throughout these decades the rules about Cuban Americans traveling to Cuba fluctuated depending on who was in office in the United States, and also according to the laws put forth by the Cuban government (Eckstein, 2009, p. 180).
Aside from the official barriers, there were the informal hostilities maintained between people. Cuban-Americans were a strong community and rallied amongst themselves to do anything they could to avoid supporting Fidel. This meant that they resisted traveling to Cuba, sending remittances, or anything else that could stimulate the Cuban economy. On the other side, Cubans considered those who fled Cuba to be “gusanos,” a pejorative term that translates to worm or maggot (Eckstein, 2009, p. 14). They wanted as little communication as possible with those who had left. Because of laws and the ideology of the people, there were very limited transnational ties between Cubans and Cuban-Americans in the first three decades following the revolution (Eckstein, 2009, p. 181-182).
After the fall of the Soviet Union and during the huge depression, the ‘special period’, transnational ties between the Island and the outside world flourished. Communication services – phone calls, sending mail, and Internet access – improved in the decades following the collapse of the Soviet Union (1991-2011). Not only were there improved services, but also the laws on both sides of the Florida straits made transnational ties easier (Eckstein, 2009, p. 183). For example, in 1993 Cuba legalized the dollar and in 2004 they introduced a second currency to use for trade on the international market called the Convertible Peso (Eckstein, 2009, p. 214-217). In the United States, laws prohibiting travel to Cuba by Cuban-Americas were loosened and travel by Cubans, the “New Cubans”, outside of Cuba increased by the thousands (Eckstein, 2009).
A change in laws and policies as well as the availability of more reliable communication services were not the only changes that occurred in Cuba in the decades following the collapse of the Soviet Union, there was change in the feelings of the people too. As Eckstein describes, emigrants who were part of the “New Cuban” wave that left after the collapse of the Soviet Union, “ tended to view Cuba through lenses similar to those of islanders, having experienced the crisis of the 1990s together, and those lenses were not red-tinted Marxist-Leninist. Beneath the veneer of Communist continuity [they] were people who had become non-ideological and pragmatic” (2009, p. 163). These words are reflective of the sentiment within Cuba too. “Islanders began to re-envision émigrés, who previously had been pejoratively portrayed as worms and scum, as heroes” (2009, p. 198). Suddenly not only were the means of communication opened, the laws made more flexible to encourage transnational ties, but the hearts and minds of the people on both sides of the Straits were opened as well.
2.4 Identity in the Cuban context
In understanding how Cuban identity is affected by transnationalism it is important first to understand Cuban identity and what aspects have been most prominent and defining in Cuban identity throughout history. As Louis A. Pérez describes in the introduction to his book, On becoming Cuban: Identity, Nationality and Culture, from the very beginning Cuban identity has brought together a great mixture of culture. Writing about Cuban identity from when Cuba gained independence from Spain and before the Revolution of 1959, Pérez discusses the immense mixture of culture and ethnicity that defined being Cuban.
To be Cuban necessarily implied an amalgamation of diverse national, racial and ethnic elements, principal among which was Europe, obviously Spain and to a lesser degree France and Italy, as well as Africa and to a lesser degree China. All of these elements exercised in varying degrees – at different times, among different sectors of the population – some influence in shaping the terms by which national identity was transacted. These circumstances were further mediated by notions of gender, class, religion, and age, and gave deeper complexity to the formulation of national identity (Pérez, 1999, p. 9).
There have been significant changes in Cuban culture since the triumph of the
revolution, but this historical context upon which Cuban culture and identity was built is still important. It is a starting point in understanding the complexities of Cuban identity today. In this quote, Pérez makes clear that Cuban identity is founded on a very diverse
mixture of peoples and culture. This is still true, but there are some important aspects that have affected Cuban identity since the Revolution.
A strong influence on the Cuban identity of the 21st century is the Revolution itself and the ideals the Revolution brought to the Cuban people. As Gott (2004) said in his book on Cuban history, “the Cubans of today are a people of recent creation. Not until after Castro’s Revolution did their society begin to come together as a unified and homogenous nation” (p.5). Much of this unification was around the new moral ideals. As Eckstein (2009) describes in her book, the “ideal revolutionary…was non-materialist, selfless, and committed to the good of society, not personal gain” (p.180). Thus, keeping transnational ties was seen as a betrayal of the Revolution, and in turn a betrayal of oneself. This has changed over the years, especially in the younger generation that did not live through the Revolution. After the depression of the 1990s, people began to focus more on family and the practical realities of everyday life. “Beneath the veneer of Community continuity were people who had become non-ideological and pragmatic” (Eckstein, p. 163). Cuba opened up to the world out of economic necessity to confront their great depression, with this change came increased transnational contact. This growth of transnationalism in the last two decades has caused Cubans to confront new cultures and ways of living and an evolving cultural identity.
2.5 What will be gained from studying identity and transnationalism in the Cuban context
This research has the potential to make an important contribution to transnational scholarship, as there is little research on how sending community members’ identities are
affected by transnational ties. In general, transnational research on identity focuses on the identity of people who themselves have emigrated and how they adjust to the receiving nation and its culture. My research investigates the processes of identity construction of individuals in the sending community of Havana, Cuba. In addition, this research helps define the evolving identity of Cubans as transnationalism becomes more and more significant in Cuba influenced by changing politics and improved communication access. Transnationalism has always been a part of Cuba’s history but it is distinct today because of the scale at which it is taking place. In the last thirty years as the political climate in Cuba has changed and allowed emigrants to return to Cuba more freely, and with an increase in long-distance communication through cell phones and the internet, Cuba’s transnational community has grown (Duany, 2005, p. 171). Though there are studies on Cuban identity of Cubans living abroad, like the works of Eckstein (2009, 2006) there are no studies looking at Cuban identity within sending communities and how they are affected by transnationalism. This research seeks to fill that gap in the literature and focuses on individuals who may have traveled abroad, but have not left Cuba, and who have significant ties to those who have left. In the end, not only will this research shine light on Havana, Cuba’s sending community but also address the much broader gap in the literature of “sending community identity”. It is hoped that the findings of this research, specific to “sending community identity” in Havana, Cuba, will be a base for comparison and understanding of the processes of identity construction in sending communities in other parts of the world.
Chapter 3: Methodology
Oral history interviews are the primary research method used in this study. An understanding of the historical development of oral history as a research method provides important context to the use of oral history in social science research in the 21st century. A rationale for the use of oral history as the main method in this research is discussed. Following this discussion, I describe the research site, the duration of the study, and an explanation of the research techniques used including details of the method of coding and analysis. Finally, there is an important discussion of the limitations and unavoidable constraints of the study.
3.1 Oral history
“Oral history is defined as a conversational narrative created by the interaction of the interviewer and the interviewee and determined by linguistic, social and ideological structures” (Grele, 2007, p. 11). To understand this definition of oral history in the context of current academic research in the social sciences, it is important to look back through history at the evolution of oral history research.
Oral history as a method of recording and interpreting the past is an ancient tool. Oral accounts by people who had been witness to an event were the main source of information for historians and academics until the nineteenth-century. The nineteenth century saw the birth of history as an academic discipline and this led to a switch from oral accounts to written accounts and archival-based research (Perks & Alistair, 1998, p.1). Oral history gained academic credibility as a research method in the 1940s and 1950s (Grele, 2007, 11). It was not until 1948 that the first organized oral history project
was completed in the United States at Columbia University. In the 1950s and 1960s, historians in Great Britain started to use oral histories to hear the stories of people who were under-represented in traditional history (Perks & Alistair, 1998). This began a movement throughout the 1960s recognized as “history from below,” that was an effort to give voice to the people who were not often asked for their perspective (Perks & Alistair, 1998, p.1). Oral history continued to grow in its use across disciplines in the social sciences until the First International Conference on Oral History took place in 1979, in England. Taking root from this conference an academic publication called, International Journal of Oral History was created in 1980. It was during the decades of the 1970s and 1980s that expanded interpretations of the value of oral history as a research method gained acceptance (Perks & Alistair, 1998, p.2-5).
The transformation of the object of investigation (the oral history) from a document revealing what had happened in the past to a dialogically constructed text. This was a basic epistemological shift from a concern with accuracy to a concern with narrative construction. (Grele, 2007, p. 12-13)
The use of oral history in social science research continues to grow and has become more and more interdisciplinary throughout the past couple of decades (Perks & Alistair, 1998, p.2-5).
The use of oral history in academic research has changed over time and the power of this research tool in capturing the meaning of an event has been recognized. As Portelli (1998) states in his influential article, “What Makes Oral History Different,” oral history does not necessarily shine new light on what happened during a certain event, but rather
reveals how people felt during that event. He says, “the first thing that makes oral history different, therefore, is that it tells us less about events than about their meaning” (p.36). Through oral history there is the chance to understand the meaning of people’s experience in the subtleties of their expression. With oral history the researcher hears people’s own voices, listens to the words they choose to express their stories, notices where they choose to put emphasis and what they choose to avoid telling. The interviewer can pay attention to pauses, expressions and tone that the interviewee communicates in the telling of their stories. This form of qualitative research collects information that is difficult to impossible to capture in written accounts (Portelli, 1998).
Understanding the meaning of an event and hearing the voices of those who are sharing oral histories are not the only aspects that make oral history unique and important as a research method. As Thompson (1998) writes in a chapter from the Oral History Reader called, “The Voice of the Past,” there are many powerful aspects to oral history. He explains how oral history can be empowering for the people involved, giving voice to individuals and communities who are not often consulted for their opinion. For example, oral history often gives voice to people of the lower classes and people of color. In the end, oral histories allow people, instead of the interviewer or academic, to describe the meaning of an event (21-28). Thomson articulates, in the following passage, the importance of a research method that gives voice to the interviewed.
The co-operative nature of the oral history approach has led to a radical questioning of the fundamental relationship between history and the community. Historical information need not be taken away from the community for interpretation and presentation by the professional
historian. Through oral history the community can, and should, be given the confidence to write its own history. (Thomson, 1998, p.30)
The idea of the community writing its own history through oral history is powerful and potentially a more accurate recording about the meaning of events. It calls into question more traditional methods academics use to interpret history that does not involve the voices of the people witnessing these events. However, there are critiques and criticisms of oral history that are important to discuss too.
In his article, “Movement without Aim: Methodological and Theoretical Problems in Oral History,” Grele (1998) discusses the criticisms about oral history that have arisen since its incorporation into academic research. He divides these criticisms into three main categories; interviewing, research standards for preparation, and questions of historical methodology (p.40). He explains that often times interviewers using oral history methods are not well prepared for interviews, nor have they done enough background research on the topic to ask perceptive questions. In addition when discussing historical methodology, he explains that there is a lack of theoretical rigor when it comes to oral history and that there is not a consensus about how oral histories should be analyzed or what purpose they serve versus other more quantitative data gathering techniques. Another criticism is that oral sources are not as credible as written documents (p.40-42). These criticisms present valid concerns and served as important issues to consider in the design and in the preparation for the oral history interviews of this study.
3.2 Oral history and identity construction
Oral histories were chosen as the main method to collect data for this research project. In part, this research method was selected because researching identity construction is subjective and requires an understanding of the individual and their own view of the world. The main idea of this research is to understand how transnational ties affect identity construction of Cubans in Havana. As described by Thomson, “personal testimony allows understanding of how moving matrices of social forces impact and shape individuals, and how individuals, in turn respond, act and produce change in the larger social arena” (Thomson 1999, p.28). My research focuses on how the social force of transnationalism affects individual Cubans and their communities. The use of oral history methodology allowed individuals to share identity narratives and provided access to their personal stories that show how Cubans are affected by having family and friends living abroad.
In the field of Migration Studies, there is an understanding that to evaluate identity construction the individuals’ personal stories and words must be heard. As Sorensen describes in her research on migrant identity in the context of the Dominican Republic, “I have elsewhere argued that if the task is to get beyond mobility, and understand how migration affects people’s sense of belonging and identity, it is necessary to listen to how migrants themselves interpret their situatedness, and how they culturally construct ‘histories’ and ‘herstories’” (Sorensen, 1998, p. 246). Sorensen’s approach is used in this project’s research on Cuban identity construction in relation to transnationalism. However, instead of focusing on the migrant I have studied the impact of the emigration of family and friends on the individuals who stayed behind. Through
the narratives recorded from the Cubans interviewees, I am able to begin to understand the social processes of Cuban identity construction and how it is or is not affected by transnational ties.
3.3 Research site and period
The research for this study was conducted in Havana, Cuba. Havana is the capital of Cuba and it is located in the northwestern region of the Island along the Atlantic Coast. The population of Havana is approximately 2.2 million, while the whole island has a population of approximately 11.2 million (World Bank, 2015). Havana was chosen as a field site in part because of the limited period in which I had to conduct research, approximately 2.5 months. There was not enough time to travel to different provinces and conduct interviews. Also, Havana has the highest percentage of emigrants per capita, and thus it is a good place to study the effects of emigration on those individuals who stay behind. Even though the population of Havana represents about 19.6% of the total population of Cuba in 2003, it accounted for almost half of the legal emigration, around 48.3% (Martín Fernández, 2007, p.151). In regards to illegal emigration, the city of Havana is not the Cuban city with the largest percentage of emigrants, although it still ranks high compared to other regions in the country (Martín Fernández, 2007, p. 152). In addition, Havana was chosen because it is the city where I, as the researcher, have the most familiarity with the culture and with the language. I studied in Havana for one semester in 2007 during my bachelor degree studies and I have continued to work and live in Cuba since 2009. In addition, my husband is Cuban and grew up in Havana, so I
have had the opportunity to develop a more intimate cultural understanding through my Cuban family.
Oral history interviews were conducted between January 8th and February 25th, 2015 in interviewee’s homes or other locations that were comfortable and accessible for them. Though I was not conducting interviews the entire period, I lived in Havana from the end of December 2014 through completion of my thesis in April 2015, which allowed me to continue to live and think about the context of Cubans in Havana. In addition, I had easy access to interviewees for follow up questions.
3.4 Research techniques
Qualitative methods were used to conduct the research discussed in this paper. Providing a definition for qualitative methods is difficult, but “perhaps one of the main distinctive features of qualitative research is that the approach allows you to identify issues from the perspective of your study participants, and understand the meanings and interpretations that they give to behavior, events or objects” (Hennink, 2011, p. 9). Qualitative methods allow the researcher to go deeply into the meaning of events, and “to explain behavior and beliefs, identity processes and understand the context of people’s experiences” (Hennink, 2011, p. 17). Though quantitative methods could potentially provide a more statistically measurable set of data, it would not allow for the exploration of identity and the ways in which people express being affected by having transnational ties. Qualitative methods were chosen because they allow for understanding the meaning people extract from experiences as well as provide an understanding of identity construction through participants’ own words and beliefs (Hennink, 2011, p. 10). The
main source of data for analysis were oral history interviews, though field notes and participant observation were also recorded throughout the research period.
3.4.1 Oral history interviews
A total of twelve interviews were conducted for this research study. A loose outline of questions directed the beginning of each interview. After the beginning, I tried to let the interviewees tell their stories and elaborate on the details of their story in the manner most comfortable and natural to them. Some of the interviews flowed more naturally than others. During those interviews that went smoothly, I would ask short follow up questions to get more details about a particular story or feeling that the interviewee described. Those interviews where the interviewee was not as open nor as readily comfortable sharing their stories, I asked more questions to prompt their sharing.
The first few interviews were conducted with individuals I knew and with whom I had previously developed trust. After those initial interviews, the snowball method helped me to find additional participants. The snowball method is a way to recruit new participants by asking for suggestions from the individuals already committed to doing an interview (Hennink, 2011, p. 100). Each time I interviewed someone, I asked them if they had friends or family who also had strong ties to family and friends abroad and if they would be willing to ask them if they might be willing to be interviewed by me. One interview was conducted in English and the rest of the interviews were conducted in Spanish. All of the interviews were recorded using a digital recorder.
I want to address the issue of language in more detail. All but one of the oral history interviews was conducted in Spanish, which is a second language for me. Even
though I speak Spanish fluently, I do not always catch cultural subtleties. However, by digitally recording every interview I was able to listen to the interviews multiple times to make sure I had understood the interviewees meaning correctly. In the end, I do not think speaking Spanish as a second language affected the results and analysis of my research in any negative way. Also, by having enough language fluency to conduct the interviews in Spanish, I avoided using an interpreter. Using an interpreter would have meant that I would not interpret the words and expressions of the interviewees, but rather those of the interpreter. In this way, it was a positive aspect that I spoke Spanish and conducted the majority of the interviews in Spanish. In addition, by speaking Spanish the interviewees could speak directly to me and we developed a closeness simply through sitting together in the same room and expressing ideas and stories to one another. Though there may have been subtleties that I did not catch during interviews because I am not a native Spanish speaker, in general I think my level of Spanish proficiency was a positive aspect for conducting interviews in Havana.
The oral history interviews were each transcribed for analysis. Four of the interviews were transcribed word for word; the remaining interviews were documented with both a detailed summary and a selection of direct quotes that were viewed as particularly relevant to the topic being investigated. In actual recorded time, the interviews ranged from 23 minutes, to 1 hour and 37 minutes. However, the interview process was actually much longer including the time of exchange in small talk before and after the interview and the time taken describing the project to the interviewee. Taking into account the whole interaction, interviews ranged from 40 minutes to 4 hours. The age of the participants ranged from 24 years old to 80 years old. In total, there were three
male and nine female participants. Nine of the interviewees were white, two were black and one was mulatta. Table 1.1 shows basic demographic information about each interviewee. In addition, the table lists the relationship that the interviewee has with the individual(s) they maintain ties with abroad as well as the location where these individual(s) live abroad. Finally, the table includes information on whether or not the interviewee is considering emigrating from Cuba.
Table 1.1 Oral history interviews
Name Gender Age Who is Abroad Where
Abroad?
Would like to leave Cuba?
Antonio M 49 Brother USA Yes
Ana F 24 Two best friends/
uncles/aunts/cousins
USA Maybe
Umberto M 52 Daughter/
Ex-Wife/Friends
ITALY/USA No
Georgina F 59 Friends USA Yes
Teresa F 65 Daughter and Son USA Maybe
Ofelia F 80 Son/Friends USA No
Maylin F 33 Ex-partner/ Brother/Friends The Netherlands/ USA In process to leave Mercedes F 70 Brother/Aunts/ Uncles/Nephew/ Niece USA/Spain No Yailem F 30 Father/Sister/Uncles /Aunts/Cousins/ Friends USA/ Canada/ Spain Maybe Sandra F 28 Ex-partner/Friends/
cousins USA Maybe
Mireya F 60 Aunts/ Cousins USA No
3.4.2 Field Notes
Field notes were taken throughout the research period. During the interviews, I used a small notepad to take down notes describing the location where I was conducting the interview as well as general observations during the interview. After the interviews, I wrote detailed notes on my thoughts and reflections. Field notes are important as they provide a frame of reference for the analysis of the oral history interviews. Even though at the time of writing field notes their value may not be clear, during the analysis phase they add an important dimension for comparison and understanding (Hennink, 2011, p.194).
3.4.3 Participant Observation
Besides oral history interviews and field notes, participant observation was used as a method of gathering information and understanding. Participant observation offers an important and less formal addition to interviews and can be defined as, “the process of learning through exposure to or involvement in the day-to-day or routine activities of participants in the research setting,” (Schensul et al, 1999, p. 91). I had a number of experiences that offered important insight from participant observation. One example occurred during a dinner visit at my aunt-in-laws home. I was spending the evening with my husband, his cousin, his cousin’s girlfriend, and his aunt and uncle at their home. In conversation before dinner his aunt told me a long and involved story of her sister’s life and how her sister’s three daughters had ended up in the United States. She described, with great emotion, how the emigration of her daughters had caused her sister great stress
and continued with tears in her eyes to describe what it is like to be a mother and the importance of being close to your children. That same evening I went with my aunt-in-law to get her nails done. The woman painting my aunt-in-aunt-in-laws nails was talking about her husband’s travels and how he spent a few months at a time each year in the United States in order to make money. Thus by chance, an evening dinner at a relative’s home became a great source of understanding about cultural norms related to emigration in Cuba and how it affects the people left behind. In this way, I was able to compare the stories and feelings described by those I interviewed with the general public I was interacting with, without conducting formal interviews.
There were other instances throughout the research period where participant observation was important for gathering an understanding of transnational ties and its affects on identity construction. Some of the other sites where important participant observation took place were, taxi rides and other public transportation, the movie theater, friends’ homes, as well as dance and theater performances. In this way, I was able to compare the stories and feelings described by those I interviewed with the general public I was interacting with in a less intimate setting.
3.5 Coding and analysis
After the fieldwork was completed, the analysis and coding of data began. Coding was combined with Narrative Analysis to analyze the data. Coding was important in investigating the varied transnational ties that interviewees had and how those ties related to identity. Narrative analysis was the primary method used for analyzing identity construction through storytelling. This method of analysis was chosen because the Oral
