"You must understand that we are very different in Cuba," insisted Gabriel Molina Franchossi, director of Gramma newspaper, the official organ of the communist party in Cuba. "To Afro-Cubans, big lips and big backsides are objects of beauty. To us, such images represent the feminine ideal." Under Castro, Blacks are well represented in the country's ruling bodies. Cuba has one of the highest literacy rates in the world and mortality rates comparable to that of Europe and the United States. Successful Afro Cubans are quick to note that they and their children have been afforded opportunities since what they call "the triumph of the Revolution" that they would never have received under the old regime.
