Rum is cheap. So is ice cream. Fidel is firmly in charge. But the subtle changes will be impossible for little Elian to miss. Home looks the same, except everyone, it seems, is sporting a new t-shirt emblazoned with Elian s image.
Billboards everywhere display countless likenesses of the little boy.
In shops and markets his picture is right up there with Che and Fidel. His photo is taped to windows and living room walls of homes all over the country. Half the news on television on any given day is about him. His story dominates the newspapers with special editions devoted solely to him. Thousands march somewhere in Cuba on a daily basis to demand his return.