Eleventh Global Studies Conference

Abstract

This paper employs William I. Robinson’s theory of globalized capitalism and Ghurminder Bhambra’s theory of connected histories as frameworks to help understand recent Cuban migration to the United States within the context of globalization. Cubans desiring to emigrate must either choose to leave illegally by boat or legally by receiving permission from the government to travel as a tourist to an approved country, such as Guyana or Venezuela. From there, they must then cross by land up to nine Central American countries to arrive in the U.S. Utilizing primary-sourced interviews, the author represents Cubans’ migration journeys from Cuba to Syracuse, New York, focusing specifically on experiences in intermediary spaces en route and across borders. By applying the aforementioned theories to personal stories of Cuban migration journeys, the author is equipped to reveal and analyze subjective and varied consequences of globalization. The combination of theory and lived experience allows the author to illustrate how social reproduction strategies involved in the process of migration serve to remedy inequalities in Cuba brought about by globalization, while at the same time further the goals of global capitalism and the global labor market.