Series I: Americans in Cuba, Those Who Came, 1988-1989, inclusive

This interview contains footage from religious summer camp in Placetas, Cuba. It features Helen Black, an American living in Cuba for many years, who works at the camp.

This video features footage of Helen Black's religious summer camp in Cuba. It begins with footage of a music lesson in the camp's chapel, and then shows campers playing volleyball on a large lawn. The video also shows Helen Black and Estela Bravo walking to a pond where several of the campers are swimming. Bravo and Black talk informally about the camp property and briefly about Elfriede Mahler, who Bravo also featured in her documentary Americans in Cuba.

This video features an interview with Helen Black. She begins by discussing the religious summer camps she runs in Cuba, and notes that the camps have not had any problems operating under Cuban government rules. She discusses her identity as an American in Cuba, traveling to Cuba for the first time in 1948, and her decision to stay after the revolution. She describes some of the changes she saw in Cuba after the revolution, and talks generally about how religious people and religion is treated in the country.

This video contains footage of a party held for Helen's 40th anniversary at the church summer camp. She is opening presents and talking with party guests. The other half of this video contains footage from an interview with Helen Black about religion, particularly Protestantism, in Cuba, and the government's attitude toward the church.

This video begins with footage of the grounds and people at a religious summer camp in Cuba. The video mostly contains footage from an interview with Helen Black: she talks about coming to Cuba in 1948 as a missionary, her religious work in Cuba, and how religious people and religion are treated in the country.

This video begins with brief interviews of teachers at a campfire meeting at Helen Black's Christian youth camp in Cuba. The meeting is also a birthday party for Helen where people are eating cake and singing. The video ends with a church service at the camp with people singing and eating.

This video contains background, interior, and exterior footage of a Christian camp in Cuba. Most of the footage is filmed while the camp participants are having dinner. There is an interview with Helen Black discussing the history of the camp. The backgroud conversations, songs, and prayers during the meal are in Spanish.

This interview with Helen Black begins with a discussion about her work in religious summer camps and her first travels to Cuba in 1951. She describes the types of people who came to her camps and the effect of the revolution on the religious community in which she lived. She explains that her camps were allowed to operate much like they did before the revolution, although government required the camps seek permission to operate. She discusses her family in the United States and the difficulties of traveling between the two countries. She also talks about what she sees as the positive and negative changes in Cuba since the revolution. At the end of the video she shares her personal philosophy in both English and Spanish, and explains that her biggest desire in life is to do God's will and help others embrace his message.

This interview with Lorna Burdsall begins with a discussion about her background as a dancer and the events that brought her to Cuba. She explains that she met her husband who was Cuban in 1953, and moved to Cuba with him in 1955. She discusses her love of modern dance, and describes joining the Department of Modern Dance in Cuba's National Theater in the early 1960s. She talks about her dance career in Cuba and the country has shaped her life. She discusses her experience performing, training and recruiting dancers, and the subsidies the government provides to the arts. She also discusses traveling between the US and Cuba, and some of the problems the country faces because of its poor relationship with the United States.

This video begins with footage of Lorna Brudsall's dance class. At minute 9:30 the footage features a group interview with class members and Burdsall. Members of the class discuss what they like about the class, their personal backgrounds, their jobs outside of the class, and the reasons they were attracted to taking dance classes with Burdsall.

This video features footage from a dance class led by Lorna Burdsall.

This video contains portions of interviews with Lorna Burdsall and Barbara Paskilitis and her family. Footage on this video appears to have been copied from other tapes and features interview segments duplicated elsewhere in the series. Video and audio quality of this recording is poor.

The recording contains an interview with Lois Kroehler who, at the time of the filming, was working at an evangelical seminary. An American, she had been in Cuba since 1949.

This video features an interview with Lois Kroehler. She begins by discussing how she first traveled to Cuba in 1949 to work as an English secretary, and soon began teaching English in a Presbyterian school. She describes her decision to stay in Cuba after the revolution and finding work as a music teacher with the Christian Education Team. She discusses her teaching and her religious work, and describes her experience traveling between the US and Cuba as an American living in Cuba. The interview largely focuses on religion in Cuba, and Kroehler's experience working as a religious teacher in the years since the revolution.

This video begins with a discussion with Lois Kroehler and her students at the Christian seminary where she teaches in Cuba. Kroehler and the students begin by singing a song, and then the group discuss what Kroehler is like as a teacher. Kroehler describes her life in Cuba and in the seminary, and discusses the misconceptions about Cuba she has encountered when talking to other Americans. The second half of the video features footage of Kroehler in the classroom leading a group of students in a lesson on translation.

This video begins with footage of Lois Kroehler teaching English in a school in Cuba. It then cuts to footage of a beach near the town of Cardenas, Cuba. Kroehler describes the beach and the town where she lives, and briefly discusses her work for the Presbyterian Church. The end of the video features footage of Kroehler leading choir practice.

This video begins with Lois Kroehler playing guitar and singing songs. The first two songs she sings are in English. She then sings a version of "No Man Is an Island," which she translated into Spanish. Kroehler then describes in Spanish the story of how she came to live in Cuba. She explains that she traveled to Cuba to learn Spanish, and after 2 years of working as a secretary was asked to stay and work as a teacher at a Jesuit school. She later began teaching classes in music and English. Kroehler also discusses the difficulty of seeing her family in the United States. She explains that it took many years until her family was able to visit her in Cuba.

This interview with Lois Kroehler begins with a discussion in Spanish of her decision to move to Cuba and her experience in Cuba as a Christian. She talks at length about being a Christian in a communist country and her personal process of overcoming her own anti-communist prejudice. She discusses the United States relationship with Cuba and Latin America in general, and expresses a hope that the United States will act as a more collaborative neighbor, and do more to consider the struggles of people in the third world. The video ends with footage of signs and the countryside outside of Matanzas, Cuba.

Most of the footage on this tape is devoted to Elfreide Mahler, which also includes performances by children and young dancers. The end of this recording also contains interview with Jean McEvoy and a Catholic minister.

This interview with Paul (Pablo) Menendez begins with a discussion about how he first traveled to Cuba to study music when he was 14 years old. He explains that his mother, singer Barbara Dane, performed in Cuba and later arranged for him to attend a music school there in 1966. He explains that youth in California in the 1960s were detached and had a very pessimistic view of the future. He explains that life in Cuba at that time felt very different and students were engaged in political climate of the early revolutionary government. He describes meeting his wife at the school he attended, and explains that they married after he had only lived in Cuba for a year. He was only 15 years old at the time.

In this interview Paul (Pablo) Menendez discusses first traveling to Cuba in his adolescence to study music. He discusses his early impressions of life in Cuba at the time, including attending the memorial to Che Guevara in 1967. The bulk of the interview focuses on his music career in Cuba, and his work with his band Mescla. He discusses the state salary the Cuban government provides for his work as a musician and the creative freedom he feels the system offers him. Menendez also discusses his identity as an American living in Cuba, and his comfort moving in and out of both cultures. The of the video features a brief interview in Spanish with his wife who talks about being married to an American in Cuba.

This video features an interview with Paul (Pablo) Menendez and his family. It begins with his wife discussing her experience of being married to an American. She discusses visits to the United States, including New York City and California, and describes the experience as a first-hand lesson in capitalism. She discusses the reason she chose to live in Cuba over a life in the United States, and explains that as an actress she would rather perform in her country. Their son also joins the conversation and discusses his education at a music school where he is studying classical guitar. Menendez then discusses freedom of expression in Cuban music, and certain restrictions that the state places on music that it distributes. He ends with a brief discussion about his hopes for the world in the post-colonial era of the late-20th century.

This video contains two takes of an interview with Pablo Menendez, his wife Adria Santana, and their son Osamu Menendez. Pablo talks about how he came to study music in Cuba as a teenager, and meeting Adria at the National School of Art where they were both students. Adria speaks briefly about her work as an actress, and Osamu speaks about his musical and high school studies. Pablo discusses his music, Cuban music, and the New Song Movement in Cuba. Halfway through the video, the audio becomes out of sync and the family does a second take of their interview.

The first half of this video features shots Paul (Pablo) Menendez's family photographs. They feature images of Menendez with his family, friends, and band members. They also feature several images of his wife's stage performances. At minute 11:45 the tape changes to footage of Marjorie Moore's class on English for medical students. The bulk of this footage features Moore and her students working through course exercises.

In this interview with Marjorie Moore, she begins by introducing herself and explaining how she moved to Cuba in 1950 following her marriage to Cuban businessman Luis Rios. She discusses her wealthy life in Cuba prior to the revolution, and explains why she and her husband decided to stay. At minute 9:30 Rios joins the interview and they both describe their decisions to support the revolution despite pressure from Rios's family to leave the country. They discuss their lives and work after the revolution, and Moore talks specifically her contribution to Cuba's 1961 literacy campaign. Finally, they briefly discuss the housing shortage in Cuba, and explain that the shortage has forced them to share a home with their two adult daughters and grandchildren.

This video features portions of an interview with Marjorie Moore and her husband Luis Rios. Moore and Rios discuss what their lives were like prior to the Cuban revolution and their decision to stay in Cuba. Moore discusses her identity as an American living in Cuba, and her relationship with her family living in America. She explains that her family is not sympathetic to the revolution, and expresses disappointment that US and Cuba have not maintained better relations. Both Rios and Moore discuss how the revolution shaped the direction of their lives, and explain that they stayed in Cuba because of their positive impressions of Fidel Castro. They also briefly discuss raising children in Cuba and the community of Americans who came to live in Cuba following the revolution. Much of the interview features loud background noises that make portions difficult to hear.

In this brief interview Marjorie Moore discusses the difficulty of traveling to the United States from Cuba, and notes it has been 10 years since she last visited. She mentions her family's disapproval of her decision to remain in Cuba after the revolution and their unwillingness to visit her. She briefly discusses her work organizing a teacher training program for English teachers in Medical Science. The bulk of the video features background footage, including a brief discussion with Moore, her husband Luis Rios, their daughter Pamela, and her two children. The video also includes footage infrastructure problems in their neighborhood, and stills of black and white photographs of Moore and Rios in the 1950s.

This video features a discussion with Barbara Paskalitis at her work in a jewelry workshop. Paskalitis begins by discussing her work cutting and shaping tortoise shells for necklaces, bracelets, and rings. She talks about her experience working in the factory and her relationship with her co-workers as the only American in the group. The video features conversations with several of Paskalitis's co-workers who talk about what it is like to work with Paskalitis and the work they perform in the company. The video ends with Paskalitis talking about the advancement of women's rights and economic independence in the period following the Cuban Revolution.

This video features an interview with Barbara Paskalitis and her family at their home in Cuba. It begins with Paskalitis speaking about the reason she moved to Cuba, and what her life has been like since the revolution. She discusses her memories of shortages of food and services, but says that access to products has improved over the years. She and her family discuss aspects of life in Cuba that they appreciate, like access to free education and good employment. They also discuss shortcomings in Cuban life including poor transportation, housing shortages, and poor service in consumer establishments. Paskalitis and her family also discuss traveling to the United States as Cuban-Americans, and their encounters with American customs agents.

This video features and interview with Barbara Paskalitis and her family. The interview begins with Paskalitis introducing her family and explaining how they came to live in Cuba. She explains that her husband Paul, who was a Greek maritime worker, was deported from the United State during the McCarthy era. Paskalitis explains that Paul's union activism made him a political target during the McCarthy era, and her children describe the impact of his deportation on their family. Paskalitis describes how the family moved to Cuba in 1960 when Paul took a job working for the Cuban fishing industry. The family talks generally about adjusting to life in Cuba, their work, and their identities as Greek, American, and Cuban.

This interview with Barbara Paskalitis and her family begins with a discussion about the ways her life has changed since she moved to Cuba in 1960. Paskalitis describes a sense of security she feels in her job, and in her ability to get medical care as she and her husband get older. She also discusses how she is received as an American in Cuba, and her children Andrew and Marianne discuss some of the discrimination they faced when they were in primary school and at the university. The end of the interview features a discussion about problems they see in Cuba, notably continued shortage of goods and services, and a growing tourist industry that caters to tourists at the exclusion of Cubans.

This video contains two interviews with Barbara Paskalitis. The first interview is at her workplace, where she talks about the work she did at a fur factory in the United States, the English tutoring she did when she first arrived in Cuba, and her current work as of the date of the interview. Her coworkers are crowded around her, and there is some footage of her working at her work station. The second part of the video contains footage of an interview with the Paskalitis family at home. Paul Paskalitis talks about his deportation from the United States during the McCarthy era due to his political beliefs and union activity, and each family member talks about what it was like to come to Cuba in 1960 at the beginning of the revolution.

This video begins with Estela directing cutaway shots of Barbara Paskalitis and her family. There is silent footage of the front gates of Seminario Evangélico, as well as street shots and footage of a woman and man driving into the seminary and unloading their car. Lois K. Matanzas talks about her work at the seminary teaching English and music, and living in Cuba. The video ends with some silent footage of the seminary grounds.

This video features an interview with Olita Proctor, an American living in Cuba, and her mother and fiancé. Proctor begins by discussing how she first moved to Cuba in 1971 after traveling to the country with the progressive student group the Venceremos Brigade. She explains that she felt at home in Cuba and decided to stay after being expelled from her American high school because of her political activism. Proctor and her mother talk about racism in the United States, and Proctor explains that as a biracial woman she has felt more in welcome Cuba. She also discusses US policy toward Cuba, her hopes that the US embargo against Cuba will end, and her sense of shame about America's treatment of Cuba. At the end of the interview she expresses her hope that all of her cousins and nephews could come to Cuba to meet her Cuban family. Video quality of this recording is poor in places.

The initial interview is with Ellen Rosensweig, her Cuban husband, and her children. Rosensweig, who is originally from California, discusses her life in Cuba and makes comparisons with the United States. This is followed by an interview with Lorna Burdsall who founded and directed a modern dance school in Cuba.

This video features footage of Marjorie Moore's teacher training course on English for medical sciences. She lectures for several minutes and then takes questions from her students. At the end of the video Moore's students discuss their impressions of her as a teacher, and specifically what it is like to learn English from an American. Her students describe her as a supportive and hardworking teacher, although several admit that they were initially intimidated by her class.

This video begins with a clip from an interview with Barbara Paskalitis and her family. They briefly discuss how long they were in Cuba, and Estela directs cutaway shots of family members. The larger portion of the video contains footage from an interview with Olita Proctor and her fiancé, Christopher Fernandez. Olita talks about her activism in Berkeley, California; coming to Cuba as a high schooler with the Venceremos Brigade; her studies; and work in Cuba since then. She discusses her feeling of being at home in Cuba, US perceptions of Cuba, and her experiences with immigration and customs during her visits to the United States.

There is image loss on top half of the screen through the entire video. This video contains footage of an interview with Olita Proctor and her fiancé, Christopher Fernandez. They talk about their relationship, wedding, and the community they live in. Olita talks about her life in the United States before coming to Cuba, her family and their visits to Cuba, overcoming the language barrier when she first arrived, her work at the psychiatric hospital, and Cuba's mental health system. The last few minutes consists of cutaway footage.

This video contains a church worship service in which people sing, read scripture, and pray. After the service, the people discuss their opinions about living in Cuba. There is also footage of the interior and exterior of the church.