Restless in Havana

A quick review of what you already know: Castro seized power in 1959; the U.S. tried—disastrously—to do him in; Castro consolidated his rule; he is now in the 45th year of one of the crudest tyrannies on earth. In 1991, the Soviet Union imploded, and many wondered whether Castro would survive— the loss of his principal patron, that is. He did, in large part because the Europeans took over where the Soviets left off: They showered him with aid, investment, and tourism. Under-age prostitution is not the least of the delights of Castro’s island. It pulls ’em in by the planeload.

From time to time, the plight of Cubans is heard above the world’s din: during the Mariel boatlift (1980); when Armando Valladares published his shattering prison memoir, Against All Hope (1984); when Castro shot down the Brothers to the Rescue planes (1996); when six-year-old Elián González was tussled over (2000); when the movie Before Night Falls appeared (also in 2000). (The movie depicts the persecution of a homosexual poet.) But mainly Castro is left in peace to torture, imprison, kill, etc., while a steady stream of Hollywood stars and other travelers sit at his feet in bobby-soxer awe.

A quick review of what you already know: Castro seized power in 1959; the U.S. tried—disastrously—to do him in; Castro consolidated his rule; he is now in the 45th year of one of the crudest tyrannies on earth. In 1991, the Soviet Union imploded, and many wondered whether Castro would survive— the loss of his principal patron, that is. He did, in large part because the Europeans took over where the Soviets left off: They showered him with aid, investment, and tourism. Under-age prostitution is not the least of the delights of Castro’s island. It pulls ’em in by the planeload.

From time to time, the plight of Cubans is heard above the world’s din: during the Mariel boatlift (1980); when Armando Valladares published his shattering prison memoir, Against All Hope (1984); when Castro shot down the Brothers to the Rescue planes (1996); when six-year-old Elián González was tussled over (2000); when the movie Before Night Falls appeared (also in 2000). (The movie depicts the persecution of a homosexual poet.) But mainly Castro is left in peace to torture, imprison, kill, etc., while a steady stream of Hollywood stars and other travelers sit at his feet in bobby-soxer awe.