Culture of Cuba - Cuban Family Life

Cuban Family Life

The Revolution of 1959 sparked the turning point in Cuban family life by promoting women's equality. New laws and policies resulted in women being educated, employed, and also increased their civil/human rights. Cuban revolutionary thought promoted class equality rather than gender equality, but women still benefitted indirectly from social changes. Because Cubans, like many Latin Americans, tend to live together as a nuclear family, grandparents often provide childcare for women in the household who work outside the home, or attend school. The Maternity Law actually ‘created’ the working woman in Cuba . “Whereas in 1955, 13 percent of the workforce was women, by 1989, the number had risen to 38.7 percent of the workforce in Cuba.”. In addition, The Family Code of 1975, especially Article 26 of the code, called for women and men to take equal responsibility for domestic labor and childcare. Marriages, divorce, children’s rights, adoption, and marital property were addressed in this new law, as were the division of family responsibilities, equal rights for marriage partners, and the sharing of household tasks. However, there were still ‘personal’ obligations women had to assume with marriage, such as ‘maternal rights,’ which were a norm in Cuban traditional society. Despite progressive measures imposed by law, some traditions stayed remained intact, and new norms for the Cuban family took time to develop.