From Barrios to Bureaucracies: Online Outcry and Offline Economics in U.S.-Cuba Relations

Abstract

This thesis argues that Cuba and Miami form a single integrated region linked by strong transnational ties that have been reshaped by the July 2021 protests (11J) and ongoing U.S.-Cuba normalization efforts. Drawing on quantitative analysis of ACLED and GDELT data, the 2024 FIU Cuba Poll, and interviews with remittance couriers and policy experts, it shows how digital media enables rapid protest mobilization and simultaneously expands the government’s repressive toolkit, particularly with the reimagined roles of Cuba's Committees for the Defense of the Revolution (CDR). Four chapters examine how distrust and the legacy of betrayal narratives polarize Cuban Americans among calls for strict sanctions and pragmatic engagement, while also illuminating the pivotal influence of diaspora entrepreneurs and informal “mule” networks in sustaining cross-border flows. As the Cuban government adapts its censorship and surveillance methods, newer waves of exiles and broader Miami communities grapple with whether remittances and fledgling private enterprises merely prop up regime controls or materially improve daily life on the island. Ultimately, this thesis proposes satellite-based internet solutions through SpaceX’s Starlink as a politically viable channel to strengthen independent civic and economic spaces in Cuba, thereby reframing U.S.-Cuba relations around family-centric policies that enhance connectivity and reduce authoritarian leverage.