The Rescue

In 1999, two Florida fishermen found a cherub of a boy named Elián González in the sea on Thanksgiving. The boy had floated alone for days. His mother managed to save her son’s life by strapping him to an inner tube before she drowned. Elián's father in Cuba desperately tried to get his son back. Our host, investigative journalist Peniley Ramírez, was also separated from her family by the Florida Straits. When Peni was 11 years old her dad told her a dangerous secret before he left on an official trip on behalf of the Cuban government — he would not be returning. Relating to Elián in many ways, Peniley seeks to unearth his story with the clarity of history, nearly a quarter century later. Looking beyond the mythology around Elián saga, from the miracle rescue to dolphins, Peni uncovers a more layered story, even dark at times. This season on Chess Piece, we tell you the Elián story unlike you've heard before.   This season's cover art by Ranfis Suárez Ramos. Thanks to These Archival Sources: Lynn and Louis Wolfson II Florida Moving Image Archives Original Material Appeared In: AP Archive Belly of The Beast Cuba CBS Early Show CBS Evening News CNN CNN's "Elián: The Remarkable Story of A Cuban Boy's Journey to America" C-SPAN Cubavisión Good Morning America ITN Archive Univision 7 News At 5pmSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Om Podcasten

At the turn of the millennium, a five-year-old boy from Cuba found off the Florida coast on Thanksgiving became the most talked about child in America. Elián González had left Cuba with his mom and a dozen other migrants, trying to make it to the U.S. but on the way, the boat capsized. Elián’s mother drowned. Before she did, she tied her child to an inner tube, saving his life. Relatives in Miami — Cuban exiles — took the boy in. His father in Cuba wanted him back. The ensuing international custody battle over Elián González became its own mini Cold War, pitting Cuban exiles in Miami against supporters of Castro’s regime on an island just 90 miles away.  The fight over Elián’s future came down to neighbor against neighbor, family against family. Now, 25 years later — we revisit his story through the voices of people who lived it firsthand. Episodes drop every Wednesday, starting 9/25/24.