Jews in Cuba (part 2)

The communities we did visit are stronger than ever in their religious commitment to Judaism. They celebrate holidays and Shabbat and study Jewish subjects, but unfortunately, the provinces lack the teachers and study materials to do consistent studies. They all have some kind of library, and we brought several hundred dollars worth of new Jewish books in Spanish to augment their collections and hopefully inspire the members. …We found the spirit very positive in each community and learned that the JDC is beginning studies for conversion for people in the provinces. Many are married to a Jewish person or are children or grandchildren of a Jewish person, but either from the father’s side or Jewish males lacking the brit milah…

The people we met are seriously involved in their respective synagogues, meeting for weekly services in all three synagogues and daily services at Adath Israel, the Orthodox Synagogue. We visited Adath Israel one evening and about 15 men filled the men’s section and I sat with 6 women behind the glass wall. After services, everyone had a small sandwich and drink (probably their dinner as dinner is usually a small meal), and then they headed home. There is a preschool and after school class run by a Jewishly well-educated woman who just returned from Israel where she and her husband studied Orthodox Jewish life for six months… He is also trained to sheckt both chickens and beef and to be the mohel, as he is the only shomer Shabbat man in Cuba. The only mikve in Cuba is located in the building and the only kosher butcher shop is three blocks away and newly renovated, thanks to a couple of large donations of friends from the U.S.

Centro Sefaradi in Havana is doing well… The community is not growing much but is maintaining its numbers and taking good care of the members, particularly their seniors. …

Both the adult and children’s Sunday school is well attended… We went with them to the Tu b’Shevat tree planting activity in a park in Miramar… They planted twelve trees, watered them, and sat down in classes to discuss the holiday with their respective teachers.

Social group meetings are happening every week in Havana. Centro Sefaradi just finished a yearlong Jewish cooking class and is beginning a quilting and embroidery class based on Jewish subjects.

The Patronato could be called the Cuban Jewish Federation and JCC. There is a youth center for those between 15 and 30 years old. It has a lounge with TV and computers for games, a small kitchen, and a meeting room. Next to it is a storeroom for humanitarian aid received from visitors and a leaders meeting room. At the back of the building, there is a gym with exercise equipment, a room for classes, and bathrooms with showers that serve all members who choose to use it. The main room is the social hall for Beth Shalom, el Gran Synagoga de la Habana that is part of the building. This is where the community has its meals, many groups meet, and various events take place for the whole community, not just the Beth Shalom members. There are many groups visiting this time of year while the weather is cooler. They come into the Patronato carrying their many large bundles of medicines, clothing, over the counter supplies, etc, and drop them in a designated space before sitting down with President Adela Dworin to learn about the community. Meanwhile, upstairs, above the synagogue, next to the Sunday school classrooms and the ORT sponsored computer lab, Dra. Rosa Behar and her two helpers are busy in the pharmacy, organizing the medicines, stocking the shelves, and filling prescriptions for anyone, Jewish or not, who has an Rx. In addition, Jews are given vitamins and over the counter supplies. The shelves are filled with many medicines but lack many others. Vitamins, antibiotics and asthma medicines are in short supply. There are not enough vitamins for everyone in Havana so the people in the provinces receive very little. The other big shortage is adult diapers. Baby diapers are available to buy, as are baby wipes, so we don’t have to schlep them; but adult diapers are impossible to get anywhere. The Bottoms Up program started by Dra. Behar and the Cuba-America Jewish Mission, serve 62 children and their mothers from birth to 3 years old with the help of our friends here in the U.S. We supply diapers, baby wipes, vitamins, and baby toys and ask everyone we know who is going to do the same. After three, the children are taken care of by the JDC through the Sunday school. There are also 6 special needs children with problems of autism, MS, and Downs syndrome. We also help with the needs of these children…

Outside the Jewish community, we observed changes both for the better and worse. Transportation is better…There are also newer cars, mostly government and foreign owned, along with the old classics and the falling apart Ladas. Intercity buses are good and always on time. There are also special buses for traveling tourists but since Cubans can also ride them, there are few seats available…

It feels like half the citizens are repairing homes or planning to do so, and many are buying new furniture. We suspect this is because many have relatives visiting from the U.S. and supply the family with money. There are also many people with cell phones. It costs 10 CUC ($12) every three months but doesn’t seem to stop people. One sees people talking on cell phones everywhere. This is wonderful because there is a great shortage of land lines so many people have not had phone service before this.

The biggest downside in the country is the lack of food variety and health care services. The shelves in the markets are almost empty, being filled with a repetition of the same items. One store might have pasta, another might have some frozen meat and lots of hot dogs. There were no chickens available in Sancti Spiritus when we were there and no eggs available anywhere in Havana the following week. We could not find napkins, peanut butter, or cheese, but could find mayonnaise, sodas, beer, rum, frozen dessert, jam, and sometimes pasta. There were lots of oil and tomato sauce and a good selection of olives and even canned sardines in tomato sauce. Sometimes, there was bread in the market, but there were also bakeries around and everyone can get their ration card bread even though they don’t particularly like it. People get most of their rice and beans in the ration store. They usually can get soap for washing and sometimes there is toilet paper…

Lack of food, medical care, psychiatric hospital, lack of doctors and nurses, lack of supplies and cleanliness, frustrations… the situation is not good for most Cubans…Many Cubans, both those dealing with the health system and doctors working in it complained about the problem. The main complaint of doctors was lack of supplies and cleanliness. They are very choosy where they will go for surgery. There is a shortage of doctors now that so many are being sent overseas and there is a shortage of nurses because few people choose this field of medicine. There are seldom sheets in the hospital and everyone must bring food for their relatives as well as do most of the nursing. There are no adult diapers and some hospitals don’t even have catheters in ICU units. There is a shortage of medicines and even syringes. The current scandal is a situation in the psychiatric hospital which used to be the pride of Cuba and praised throughout the Spanish speaking Americas. The director died a few years ago and since then, the hospital has fallen into disrepair. The hospital windows are broken; there is little food for patients, and hardly any blankets. Early January, when a long and severe cold wave hit, 28 patients died from exposure. Citizens are livid and talk about heads rolling.

Karate and Tai Chi have become popular with classes both indoors and in various parks. Movies are popular, as always, and the week we were there, the big movie was Bastardes Sin Gloria (Inglorious Bastards). On January 27th, there was a national commemoration of the end of the Holocaust In ceremonies and on TV, and both newspapers and TV were reporting on the Israeli aid to Haiti. The Jews of Cuba are very proud.