A Snapshot of Cuba During the 1990’s

Pictured here is a photo taken by Tria Giovan, a Caribbean (Virgin Islands) raised photographer that traveled to Cuba for 12-month periods during the 1990’s. This photo is of a general media vendor who is selling both Russian and Cuban media. At the time, Cuba still had strong relations with Russia despite the recent fall of the Soviet Union and there was some cultural crossover, both politically and socially. The Castro regime had resisted the Soviet’s attempts at making them a sort of satellite country, but there was still trade and engagement between these countries during the 80’s. With the Soviet Union dissolved and the United States engaged in Latin America, neoliberalism would become dominant during the 90’s. This photo in particular demonstrates how Cuba was resistant to this shift due to its isolation, and the United States embargo.

The photographer took these photos in order to take a snapshot of a country that was in some ways, still living in the ways of the past, before the domination of neoliberalism in the Caribbean and the rest of Latin America. This corporatization, influence of foreign governments, and increase in inequality was something that Cuba would not see during this era. While Cuba had its own problems, namely an authoritarian single-party state, the absence of these elements made it especially unique during this decade. Giovan most likely took this photo and others in the portfolio to share with other Latin Americans and United States citizens to demonstrate how Cuba was more resistant to neoliberal reforms, and in some ways, maintained a charm prior to this era.

Works Cited

Dailymail.com, F. (2017, July 06). Cuba photographs show life in 1990s. Retrieved April 17, 2021, from https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4668380/Cuba-photographs-life-1990s.html