Cuban-American

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July 17, 2026

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Cuban Americans are people of Cuban ancestry residing in the United States. The modern migration of Cubans to the U.S. began in 1959 following Fidel Castro's revolution, which transformed Cuba into the first communist country in the Western Hemisphere. Many early immigrants were middle-class professionals who feared Castro's regime.12

Subsequent waves of immigration occurred due to political and economic pressures in Cuba, including the Mariel boatlift in 1980, which saw approximately 125,000 Cubans emigrate to the U.S.. The Cuban Adjustment Act of 1966 allowed Cubans to apply for legal residency after one year of arrival, encouraging further migration. Today, over two million people of Cuban ancestry live in the U.S., with the largest concentration in Florida, particularly Miami.3421

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Hispanic Americans
Cubans
In January 1959 revolutionary Fidel Castro overthrew the Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista. Relations between Cuba and the United States soon began to deteriorate. Castro confiscated property belonging to American companies and announced his intention of stirring up a communist revolution throughout Latin America. He…
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In January 1959 revolutionary Fidel Castro overthrew the Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista. Relations between Cuba and the United States soon began to deteriorate. Castro confiscated property belonging to American companies and announced his intention of stirring up a communist revolution throughout Latin America. He…
Read More

Hispanic Americans
Portrait of ethnic diversity
…largest groups of Hispanic Americans—Cubans and Salvadorans—each have populations of more than two million. People of Cuban ancestry have long formed a major group of Hispanic Americans. Many people fled to the United States from Cuba after Fidel Castro’s communist revolution of 1959. While Cuban Americans include people from…
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…largest groups of Hispanic Americans—Cubans and Salvadorans—each have populations of more than two million. People of Cuban ancestry have long formed a major group of Hispanic Americans. Many people fled to the United States from Cuba after Fidel Castro’s communist revolution of 1959. While Cuban Americans include people from…
Read More