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Juan M. Clark (1938-2013) was a Cuban sociologist and professor emeritus of Miami Dade College. A veteran of the Bay of Pigs invasion, Clark was imprisoned by the Cuban government from January to December 1962.

He has authored several books on human rights abuses in Cuba.

Clark died in Miami in February 2013.

René Ariza was a Cuban actor, director and writer born in Havana in 1940. Ariza graduated from the Academia Municipal de Artes Dramáticas in 1959, eventually receiving the Premio de la Unión Nacional de Escritores y Artistas de Cuba (UNEAC) in 1967 for his play "La vuelta a la manzana."

An opponent of the Castro regime, he was jailed in 1974 for his political views until Amnesty International intervened and he was released to the United States in 1979.

Some of his most well-known plays include "Los tres cerditos y el lobo carnicero," the aforementioned "La vuelta a la manzana" and "El banquete." His unpublished work was destroyed during his time in prison, but he continued his creative pursuits until his death in California in 1994.

Teobaldo Rosell was a Cuban doctor and businessman who served as President of Gulf & Western Industries in the Dominican Republic, and became a leader of the Cuban exile community in that country.

José Miró Cardona was born in Havana, Cuba on August 22, 1902. His father fought for liberation from Spain as a general in the Cuban War of Independence (1895-1898). Miró Cardona graduated from the University of Havana Law School. He set up a law practice in Havana in 1938, and accepted a position as a professor of criminal law at his alma mater. Later, he was named Dean of the university’s law school, and became president of the Cuban Lawyers College.

In 1955, he joined the Society of Friends of the Republic (Sociedad de Amigos de la República), founded by the elder statesman Cosme de la Torriente. The society worked towards reconciling the differences between the Batista regime and its opponents. Miró Cardona moved soon into outright opposition to Batista, and was forced to seek asylum in the Argentine embassy in Havana. Afterward, he fled to Miami where he joined forces with Fidel Castro during the 26th of July Movement (Movimiento 26 de Julio). Miró Cardona’s task was to organize various exile groups in Miami and rally them behind Castro’s banner.

On January 6, 1959, after the Castro’s revolution had succeeded in overthrowing the Batista regime, Miró Cardona was appointed Prime Minister of the new government. He proceeded to steer the country toward a democratic and constitutional government and to reform the court system in accordance with the constitution of 1940. In 1960, Miró Cardona agreed to serve as Cuban Ambassador to Spain. Later, Castro designated Miró Cardona to be Ambassador to the United States. However, Miró never assumed his ambassadorial post. Instead, Miró resigned his professorship at the University of Havana in protest against demands of the pro-Castro University Student Federation that all “counter-revolutionary professors” be dismissed. After his resignation, Miró Cardona took refuge yet again in the Argentine embassy and left for the United States.

One of the principal challenges facing the anti-Castro movement in the United States was a lack of unity among some 187 exile groups, spanning widely divergent political and economic views, and united only in their common opposition to Castro. A series of meetings held in New York City and Washington D.C. in February and March of 1961 led to an agreement between the two main opposing groups: The Revolutionary Democratic Front (FRD) under Manuel Antonio de Varona and the People’s Revolutionary Movement (MRP) lead by Manuel Ray. Miró Cardona served as a mediator in this process.

On March 22, 1961 the formation of the Cuban Revolutionary Council (CRC), under the presidency of Miró Cardona, was formally announced. The Cuban Revolutionary Council was neither a government in exile nor a provisional government. The fundamental objective of the CRC was the liberation of Cuba through arms with the help of United States. Miró became the head of the exile group that worked with the Kennedy administration to prepare for the Bay of Pigs Invasion in 1961. It was decided that Miró would become the provisional president of Cuba should the invasion succeed. Miró detailed a plan for an economic and political constitution for Cuba’s post-Castro future.

On April 17, 1961, a force of some 1300 anti-Castro fighters landed at the Bay of Pigs on the southern coast of Cuba. The attempted invasion had immediate international repercussions. Within seventy-two hours, the offensive was crushed, and most of the participants were taken prisoner by the Castro government. After the defeat, Miró Cardona consulted with President John F. Kennedy at the White House and received assurances that efforts would be made to obtain humane treatment for the prisoners. The dissensions inside the Cuban Revolutionary Council rose after the Bay of Pigs disaster. Miró Cardona renounced the presidency of the Council in 1963. He and his wife, Ernestina Torra, moved with their two children from Miami to San Juan, Puerto Rico where he worked in the University of Puerto Rico as a professor of Criminal Law and Legal advisor until his death on August 10, 1974.

The singer Rolando Laserie (1923-1998) from Santa Clara province in Cuba began his musical career as a percussionist with bands in his hometown. Laserie later moved to Havana, where he performed with various musical groups including Benny Moré’s Banda Gigante. Known as “El Guapachoso” (the Ebullient One), Laserie recorded many albums and attained great popularity with his unique interpretation of boleros, guarachas, and other musical genres. Among his best known songs are “Sabor a Mi” and “Amalia Batista.” He was also famous for the interjection “¡de película!” (“out of a movie!”).

In 1960, Laserie went into exile with his wife Gisela, living and performing in Argentina, Mexico, Venezuela, and New York before settling in the 1970s in Miami, Florida, where he died on November 22, 1998.

Hortensia Montero (1909-1998) was a Cuban mezzosoprano and composer.

Tomás Fernández Robaina is a researcher and professor at the Biblioteca Nacional José Martí in the Department of Cultural and Historical Research and Library Sciences.

He has published numerous works on Afro-Cuban topics including identity, race relations and religion.