This two-block stretch in the heart of Little Havana is lined with monuments commemorating the heroes that fought for Cuban independence. Here an eternal flame burns in memory of the 94 Cuban exiles who gave their lives in the foiled 1961 Bay of Pigs Invasion of Cuba. A bronze map of Cuba is dedicated to the "ideals of people who will never forget the pledge of making their fatherland free." A statue of Jose Marti, leader of Cuba's independence struggle against Spain, holds a prominent space on this tree-lined boulevard. Other statues are dedicated to the Virgin Mary; Nestor "Tony" Izquierdo, a soldier at the Bay of Pigs, and General Antonio Maceo, an Afro-Cuban general who died fighting for Cuban independence.
In the center of the block stands a massive ceiba tree, a tree considered sacred by most African religions. Practitioners of Santeria, an Afro-Cuban religion, leave ritual sacrifices of chicken bones and bundles of cloth among the tree's roots in hopes of gaining the blessing of a saint. Other believers claim a miracle happens every afternoon at the Virgin Mary statue when a beam of light shoots through the leaves overhead onto the Christ child in Mary's arms.
Cuban Memorial Boulevard holds great cultural and historical significance to the exile residents of Little Havana. It's also a focal point for political demonstrations, community gatherings, celebrations, and daily socializing. Miami's Little Havana, centered around SW 8th Street, is the historical and geographical center of the Cuban exile community in the U.S. Known affectionately as Calle Oche, the 25-block enclave of Little Havana is the first place of settlement for newly arrived immigrants. This neighborhood was created in the 1960s when large numbers of Cubans fled to Miami from the newly-formed government of Fidel Castro. At the time, Miami was not the multicultural metropolis it is today. The non-English speaking Cubans were not welcomed, so they created their own community west of downtown Miami. Still today little English is spoken in Little Havana, where Spanish is the official language.
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