Atlas of Hispanic-American History

New Jersey; Washington, D.C.; and New
York City.
The part of Miami where Cuban
exiles concentrated, which became known
as Little Havana, is still the center of the
nation’s Cuban-American community.
Spanish became widely spoken there,
with the main thoroughfare called Calle
Ocho, “Eighth Street.” Cuban food and
culture became predominant in Little
Havana, including such customs as play-
ing dominoes (a Caribbean pastime
shared by Cubans with Puerto Ricans
and Dominicans) and drinking cafecita, a
variety of espresso. In addition, the calen-
dar itself testified to the strong Cuban
presence in Little Havana, with such
annual events as the January 28 parade in

celebration of José Martí and the Carni-

val parades and balls on the last day be-

fore Lent.

Bay of Pigs and

the Cuban Missile Crisis

With the help of the U.S. Central

Intelligence Agency (CIA), a group of

Cuban exiles in Florida prepared diligent-

ly to overthrow Castro’s government. On

April 17, 1961, about 1,500 exiles launched

their invasion at the Bahía de Cochinos, or

Bay of Pigs, Cuba. The result was a fiasco.

Castro’s armed forces decimated the

invaders when an expected popular rebel-

lion failed to materialize and President

LA RAZA UNIDA 181

The Bay of Pigs Invasion, 1961

Cuban refugees arrive in the United

States in 1964. (Department of

Defense)

On April 17, 1961, a force of CIA-trained Cuban exiles left training camps in Florida, Guatemala, and Nicaragua to launch an

invasion of Cuba. Advancing from Puerto Cabezas in Nicaragua and then from Swan Island in the Caribbean, the force landed at

Bahía de Cochinos (Bay of Pigs) in Cuba. After occupying the beachhead for two days, they were crushed by Castro’s army.