Cuban refugee Carlos Eire comes to Fresno to share his coming of age story, which focuses on his escape from Cuba and his journey through the American foster care system, March 21.

Eire spoke during the Town Hall Meeting at the William Saroyan Theatre and is currently a professor of History and Religious studies at Yale University. Though it could be expected for him to share his personal experience and feelings about the transition, he chose to spread awareness about Cuba’s current circumstances.

U.S. History teacher Jordana Siebert took five students to hear Eire as her classes are studying the Cold War and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Senior Dana King and sophomores Jieun Seo, Tynin Fries and Robbie Hill and freshman Callista Fries listened to Eire give a 30-minute Q & A to students before the Town Hall Meeting.

He spoke Cuba’s leadership within the last 50 years, Fulgencio Batista, Fidel Castro and Che Guevara. Though Guevara is often viewed as a South American freedom fighter, Eire said this is a misconception because Guevara is responsible for the murders of village peasants all throughout the continent who refused to join his “heroic freedom” regime.

A main point that was emphasized is that Americans often think that change only has a positive result, however, for Cuba, change took a negative spin on their economy and country. Due to these events, each citizen’s income is $18 a month and once being a country known for exporting sugar, they now have to import the spice because of the inefficiency of their land use. Eire also said that there is no blockade between Cuba and America, but rather it is propaganda endorsed by Castro.

Eire wrote two novels about Cuba and his passion for the country titled, Waiting for Snow in Havana: Confessions of a Cuban Boy and Learning to Die in Miami: Confessions of a Refugee Boy. As a result Eire is now an enemy of the Cuban state.

For more photos, check out Gustavo strikes again! or Awaiting accreditation.