Short Essay On Reinaldo Arenas

Reinaldo Arenas was a Cuban poet and novelist. He was born in Cuba on July 16, 1943. While working at the Biblioteca Nacional José Martí, his literary craftsmanship was noticed and he was awarded prizes at Cirilo Villaverde National. By 1967, his openly gay lifestyle and writings brought him to a disaccord with the communist Cuban government. Consequently, Reinaldo was imprisoned in 1974 for ideological deviation and for publishing abroad without consent. He successfully escaped from prison however his failed attempt to flee Cuba resulted in his rearrest. Arenas managed to continue writing in prison but when he tried smuggling his work out of prison, he was caught, and punished.
Threatened with death, Arenas was forced to repudiate his work and was released in 1976. Afterward, he fled to the U.S. alongside thousands of Cubans of the Mariel Boatlift. Arenas uses The Parade Ends to recount his memories of the events leading up to the mass departure of Cubans during the Mariel Boatlift. As well as, to reflect on his survival from the oppression of the Cuban government and from prison.
The …show more content…
On April 4th, the Cuban government withdrew its military forces from the embassy. Following their withdrawal, Cubans began entering the embassy. Cuban officials announced that anyone who had not entered the embassy grounds by force would be allowed to emigrate. Thus, on April 14th, President Jimmy Carter announced the U.S. would accept 3,500 refugees. In response, Cuban President Fidel Castro announced that the port of Mariel would be opened to anyone wishing to leave Cuba, only if they had someone to pick them up. In all, 125,00 Cubans fled to the U.S. Many of them had been released from jails and mental asylums, others included homosexuals fleeing persecution. The Mariel boatlift ended on October 31st, 1980 by a mutual agreement between the Cuban and United States