you are being asked to compare and contrast the experiences of
two groups in Miami during the period from the 1950s through the 1980s. As you know, the city
of Miami experienced significant changes during this period. With the civil rights movement
earning African Americans their rights (as well as the continuation of this battle), the
immeasurable impact of waves of immigration from Cuba, Haiti, and several other Caribbean
and Latin American countries, and, of course, the Anglo establishment’s reaction to these
changes, there is perhaps no city in the United States with such a dynamic recent history as the
city of Miami. However, as these changes in demographics and the local economy came about,
there were significant differences in the way Miami’s diverse population experienced these
changes. For example, the experiences of the first waves of Cuban immigrants were different
from those who came over during the 1980s, and the Cuban immigration experience was much
different from that of the Haitians. In addition, the arrival of these immigrant groups affected
the entire city in terms of economic development and access to the political power structure,
all of which was significantly impacted by the Latinization of the city and what Alejandro Portes
describes, in the book Miami Now!, as the process of “acculturation-in-reverse” (xiv).
In this paper, you are being asked to compare and contrast the experiences of two
specific groups: Cuban and Haitian immigrants. By comparing and contrasting the different
experiences of Miami’s ethnic groups, we can begin to better understand both the history of
our city and how this history continues to impact the city today.
Readings and Sources
Detention by Design, a WLRN Podcast by Danny Rivero
Readings from Miami Now!: Immigration, Ethnicity, and Social Change and Black Miami
in the Twentieth Century
The Writing Prompt
After completing all of the assigned unit readings, you will write a 1200 to 1500 word
compare and contrast essay (not including the works cited page) in which you compare and
contrast the experiences of Haitian and Cuban immigrants who came to Miami from the 1950s
through the 1980s. In your essay, you should go beyond just pointing out similarities and
differences. Instead, you should discuss the significance of these similarities and differences. In
short, what do we learn from comparing the experiences of these two groups? Your essay must
a minimum of four sources from the approved reading folder (the podcast episodes and the
assigned chapters, including readings from previous units). Other outside sources must be
approved by me in advance. Additionally, your essay must be organized around a clear and
concise thesis statement, present your ideas in well-structured body paragraphs, incorporate
strong support to help you develop your main points, employ a logical organizational structure,
and use MLA in-text citations and a properly formatted MLA works cited page. Finally, your
essay will avoid the use of first- and second-person pronouns (I, me, my, us, we, you, your,
yours, etc.). (Note: Although part of the paper, the works cited page is not included in the total
word count for the paper. For example, if a document contains 1200 words but that includes
the works cited page, the essay is not 1200 words long.)
IMPORTANT NOTE ON CITING THE PODCAST EPISODES: Each episode of the podcast series
Detention by Design should be cited as its own source on the works cited page; therefore, each
episode counts as one source used in your paper. I recommend following citation models that
start with the episode title rather than the host since, if you start the citation with the host’s
name, all your in-text citations will need both the host’s name and episode title. If the works
cited entry starts with the episode title, that’s all you’ll need to cite for the in-text citation.
For our readings, of course, you always start your citation with the author(s) names and use
their names and page numbers for your in-text citations.
Below I will leave all the sources that have to be used in addition to a previous essay that you can also use.
It has to have an introduction, 5 body paragraphs and a conclusion. Next I will stop saying that the 5 paragraphs have to talk
body paragraph #1
-Circumstances at Home in Cuba
body paragraph #2
-Federal or State Response/Reception and Policies with Haitians
body paragraph #3
-Economic power and the creation of opportunities with Cubans
body paragraph #4
-Economic Power and Opportunity with Haitians
body paragraph #5
-Political Power and Representation, Role of Race and Language, and Ethnic Enclave Community.
In the pre-essay that I will leave below you can see how these topics are specifically talked about.
each episode of the podcast transcript counts as a different source.
Please make sure it is 1200 to 1500 words and make sure it is free of plagiarism.
