The first trial of the Inquisition in Havana was against a Jew, Francisco Gomez de Leon, executed in Cartagena, after, of course, confiscating his large fortune, which without doubt was the cause of his persecution. However, others fared better, and by bribing the proper authorities, were able to settle in peace and even prosper. Jews brought the sugar cane from Madeira to Brazil and from there to the Antilles. They were also the inventors of growing tobacco under a cloth, to protect it from the sun and wind. The system is still used today to produce the best and most expensive tobacco leaves in the world.
Tobacco continues to be an important industry for the country.
The large Jewish migration occurred between 1910 1920. They came from Europe, trying to enter the US, which at the time had a very strict quota system, so they landed here, as a stop over. Then, according to Salim Tache Jalak, a member of the orthodox congregation belonging to the Adath Israel synagogue, they found here the only land in the world in which there is no anti-Semitism , a good climate, a friendly people, so many decided to stay and settle. And settle they did, and many prospered, of course, in the garment industry. I remember, as a child, walking down Muralla Street in old Havana.