Returning to Miami this summer was a breath of fresh air (literally), but it was also a chance to revisit all the places and people I had called home for so long. During this welcome back tour through South Beach, Wynwood, my old school, and my secret hangouts, I inevitably wound up seated in Versailles. A local favorite, Versailles is arguably the most famous Cuban restaurant in the world (at least that's what their menu claims) and a great place to sit down for a cortadito (Cuban espresso) and listen to the old men talk (shout) politics. But as I was finishing my Ropa Vieja (a traditional cuban dish, meaning “old clothes”) I couldn’t help but notice that the tone had shifted: no longer was I hearing tired out rants about the old days in Cuba or war stories of the Bay of Pigs Invasion. Rather it seemed that everybody was talking about the reestablishment of U.S. - Cuba diplomatic relations. Everybody, old and young, customer and employee, seemed to be involved in the debate.It didn’t take long after that night for Versailles to become a media frenzy. Protesters from both sides camped out in the parking lot -- a common occurrence as the restaurant is considered the unofficial town square for the Cuban community -- and reporters and politicians arrived in waves. Signs stating things like "Obama Coward Shame on You" could be seen waving in the face of U.S.-Cuba relations supporters, many of whom wore Obama t-shirts, and heated debates, even some fights, took place. Those against the opening of U.S.-Cuba relations, including Cuban-American senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Ted Cruz (R-TX), argued that the US is essentially negotiating or “in bed” with communists and terrorists. They claimed that such a move would be a betrayal to the Cuban exiles living in the US and those still living in Cuba. In contrast, the supporters of Obama’s policy contended that the opening of U.S.-Cuba relations would not only allow many Cuban-Americans to travel back to Cuba and visit family (which has been incredibly hard to do for over 50 years), but it would also allow the U.S. to have some influence over the Cuban government’s policies and thus be better able to protect Cubans against human rights violations, e.g. torture, unfair trials, and extrajudicial executions (also called El Paredón). They have also pointed out that Obama’s policy in no way lifts the commercial, economic, and financial embargos on Cuba, or at least not yet. The older generation (the original exiles) generally condemns any possible relationship with the communist government while the younger generation is typically much more open to the idea of a extending a diplomatic hand. However, there are the outliers to these trends, such as younger Cubans who are newly exiled or are third generation and older Cubans who are frustrated with the stalemate of Cuba and want something, anything to change.Throughout the days and weeks after the official reestablishment of relations on July 20, 2015, the debate began to sound eerily familiar. On one side there are those strictly against cooperation with a communist country and on the other those in favor of maintaining and establishing relations in order to better influence or keep an eye on the country. It echoes the 1971 “ping-pong diplomacy” coupled with the Period of Rapprochement in 1972 and the Chinese Economic Reform (改革开放) of 1978. The themes were always along the lines of “Capitalism vs. Communism” or “Freedom vs. Oppression.” Popular headlines focused mainly on the U.S. going "soft on communism" and the potential for the spreading of China’s communism. Over thirty years later, these themes still exist under the surface but the focus has shifted as China has become an economic and global power in competition with the United States.It’s hard to compare China’s evolution to anything that Cuba is currently capable of - after all, the boom of the Chinese economy is many times seen as nothing short of a miracle - but it's also hard to deny that the political atmospheres and the reactions of the media and public are incredibly similar. It seems that the United States and other western countries have not let go of the Cold War’s attitudes and fears (at least not completely) and it might very well be that this tension will persist for years to come. History, as it tends to do, is repeating itself, but it doesn’t have to. Perhaps in the past 40 plus years since the famous Nixon-Mao handshake, the United States has evolved to display a greater sense of sincerity, and has authentically began to use the extension of diplomatic hands as a genuine attempt at cooperation rather than a wolf in sheep's clothing. This article was written by Ana Cicenia. Send an email to [email protected] to get in touch. Photo Credit: Lucille Riesbeck