Gusano

Gusano (lit. worm, fem. gusana) is the Spanish language term for "worm". It is a name first given to those who fled Cuba after the overthrow of the dictator Fulgencio Batista. Later it was used to describe Cuban exiles in general, and their Cuban-American descendants. By the 1970s, Fidel Castro had widely adopted the term in speeches to refer to Cubans that had fled the country, as well as resident Cubans who applied to leave. It has also sometimes been used as a prideful self-identifying term amongst Cuban exiles.

The popularity of the term gusano has changed throughout its history. It was first used to describe Cuban emigrants in the early 1960s, who were considered "counter-revolutionary", or politically spineless. The word was then often used during acts of repudiation against emigrants. The negative perception of diasporic Cubans as gusanos changed with the dialogue of 1978, which allowed many exiles to return to visit relatives, often bringing money. The Mariel boatlift interrupted this cultural reconciliation. In the 1990s, relations with diasporic Cubans in Cuban families improved, and the term gusano fell out of use.