"Rafael Hernandez, one of the most visible intellectuals living and writing in Cuba today, addresses such controversies as the current social diversity brought about by socialist policies, the presence of well-educated new generations, and the emergence of growing inequality that accompanied and has followed the crisis of the 1990s. He also discusses the role played by Fidel Castro in this transitional period; Cuban foreign relations; the revival of religious practices on the island; the new debate over racial prejudice and discrimination; and the new environment for artistic freedom of expression."--BOOK JACKET.