CARDENAS, Cuba (WSVN) — After he was forcibly removed from a Miami home 17 years ago, Elian Gonzalez is now telling his story in his own words.
Gonzalez is a figure in South Florida that many still remember. Many will never forget the images of him as a 6-year-old being taken from a relative’s house in Little Havana to be sent back to Cuba in a raid.
Now 23 years old, Gonzalez currently lives with his father in Cardenas, Cuba, and he rarely speaks publicly.
However, in an exclusive interview with CNN, Gonzalez addressed multiple topics, including U.S. Cuba relations and said he’s glad that he was returned to his home country.
“I think I would have become the poster boy for that group of Cubans in Miami that tries to destroy the revolution, that try to make Cuba look bad,” Gonzalez said. “I would have been used in that way, maybe I would have become an actor on TV or maybe I would have more money than I have here with more comforts, but I wouldn’t have my family. I wouldn’t have the tranquility I have in Cuba.”
Gonzalez became the center of an international custody battle back on Thanksgiving Day in 1999, after his mother died getting him to Miami. Gonzalez was found floating on an inner tube after the smugglers’ boat he and his mother were on capsized in rough seas.
His mother and six others lost their lives.
Gonzalez spoke fondly of Fidel Castro during the interview. “Fidel put many things in my hands,” he said. “Fidel told me if I wanted to be an athlete, he supported that. If I wanted to be a swimmer, he supported that. If I wanted to be an artist, he supported that, and he did.”
President Trump also was addressed. “It’s a pity the latest events that have taken place. In terms of President Trump’s pronouncements towards Cuba, I only hope that relations improve until our differences can be cleared up,” Gonzalez said. “Everyone can have their different point of view, have their political differences, but I don’t think the countries and that families should continue to be separated.”
He says that while Cuba is and always will be his home, he hopes to some day reconcile with his relatives in South Florida.
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