Editing Operation Peter Pan (section)

== Origins ==
=== Aftermath of the Cuban Revolution ===
Following the [[Cuban Revolution|Cuban Revolution of 1959]], but more importantly after the regime's October 1960 move to nationalize industries, the first wave of Cuban immigrants left for the United States. These upper and upper-middle classes were not tied to [[Fulgencio Batista|Batista]]'s government (those left in the days following the overthrow of Batista) but had economic livelihoods incompatible with the regime's goals. Most, if not all, thought it to be a temporary departure, imagining a life where they would return to Cuba once another regime came to power in the country. 
An additional wave of Cubans left upon the failure of the [[Bay of Pigs Invasion]] and the subsequent announcement by Castro that he was a [[Marxism–Leninism|Marxist-Leninist]]. 
This proclamation of a new order acted as a catalyst to leave to those who had adopted a "wait and see" attitude to developments. This third wave of Cuban immigrants was predominantly middle class. This wave of Cuban immigrants included middle merchants and management, landlords, mid-level professionals and a significant representation of skilled [[unionized]] workers. The constituents of these different classes looked on warily at the closures of private universities and schools in 1961 since these actions played into their fears that the government would take over the education of their children.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Pedraza-Bailey |first1=Silvia |title=Cuba's Exiles: Portrait of a Refugee Migration |journal=The International Migration Review |date=1985 |volume=19 |issue=1 |pages=4–34 |doi=10.2307/2545654 |jstor=2545654 |pmid=12267275 }}</ref>

=== Parental fears ===
{{See also|Cuban Literacy Campaign}}
By 1960, the Cuban government began reforming education strategies. School children were taught military drills, how to bear arms, and anti-American songs.<ref name=natgeo>{{Cite news|title = Cuba's 'Peter Pans' Remember Childhood Exodus|url = https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2015/08/150814-cuba-operation-peter-pan-embassy-reopening-Castro/ |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190802115136/https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2015/08/150814-cuba-operation-peter-pan-embassy-reopening-Castro/ |url-status = dead |archive-date = 2 August 2019 |publisher = National Geographic |access-date = 3 August 2019 | date= 15 August 2015}}</ref> By 1961, the Cuban government would seize control of all private schools.

As a result of the new social order, rumors began to swirl, originating from both inside the United States and other anti-Castro media. Various outlets, including the ''[[Miami Herald]]'' and [[Time (magazine)|''Time Magazine'']], reported that Castro and his followers intended to terminate parental rights, assume custody of all Cuban children, prohibit religion and indoctrinate them into communism.<ref name="Patria">{{cite book |last1=Shnookal |first1=Deborah |chapter=The Patria Potestad Hoax |pages=105–126 |jstor=j.ctv12sdxzr.9 |doi=10.2307/j.ctv12sdxzr.9 |title=Operation Pedro Pan and the Exodus of Cuba's Children |date=2020 |publisher=University of Florida Press |isbn=978-1-68340-155-1 |s2cid=240848874 }}</ref> The CIA-backed [[Radio Swan]] station asserted that the Cuban government was planning to remove children from their parents and send them to the [[Soviet Union]]. These claims lacked evidence, but denials fell on deaf ears.<ref name="Patria"/>

These rumors, combined with the pre-existing worry instilled by the [[Spanish Civil War]] (during which [[Evacuation of children in the Spanish Civil War|children were evacuated to other countries]]), made the ''patria potestad'' hoax impossible to contain. It had already reached the Catholic church and the general public, and opponents of the now openly communist regime who did not migrate during the first wave of the exodus began sending their children off to perceived safety.{{cn|date=May 2023}}

=== Organizing an exodus ===
Having been involved in a similar program that gained young Hungarians entrance to the US following Soviet repression of the 1956 uprising,<ref name="Shnookal 2020 Operation Pedro Pan and the Children Who Could Fly">{{cite book |last1=Shnookal |first1=Deborah |chapter=Operation Pedro Pan and the Children Who Could Fly |pages=127–159 |jstor=j.ctv12sdxzr.10 |doi=10.2307/j.ctv12sdxzr.10 |title=Operation Pedro Pan and the Exodus of Cuba's Children |date=2020 |publisher=University of Florida Press |isbn=978-1-68340-155-1 |s2cid=242394605 }}</ref> Father Bryan O. Walsh of the [[Catholic Charities|Catholic Welfare Bureau]], with the help of the U.S. government, developed the Cuban Children's Program in late 1960. Key players included [[Tracy Voorhees]], [[Eisenhower Administration]], James Baker, Father Walsh, and in Cuba [[Polita Grau]] and her brother Ramón Grau Alsina.

An October meeting brought the influx of Cuban refugees in Miami to the attention of the White House, with particular focus on what appeared to be a high number of unaccompanied minors wandering the city. Shortly after, [[Tracy Voorhees]] – a veteran U.S. government official who was serving as the president's Personal Representative for Cuban Refugees – reported that, though the issue was not large in number, it had still been highly publicized and, therefore, the administration needed to be seen taking action.<ref name="Shnookal 2020 Operation Pedro Pan and the Children Who Could Fly"/>

Up until that time, the Catholic church had been the largest provider of aid. But, towards the end of 1960, President Eisenhower approved $1 million to help, with specific funds allocated to the creation of a Cuban emergency refugee center. To further their efforts, and ultimately further the smear campaign of Castro's Cuba, Voorhees recommended the administration further their involvement, this time taking specific interest in caring for the Cuban refugee children.<ref name="Shnookal 2020 Operation Pedro Pan and the Children Who Could Fly"/>

Simultaneously, James Baker (headmaster of an American school in Havana) met with Walsh (who was already invested in helping already arrived child refugees settle into their new life) to detail his efforts helping parents send their children to Miami. Baker's original goal was to establish a boarding school in the United States for Cuban refugee children. However, both later agreed professional social welfare agencies would be better equipped for the job. The Catholic Welfare Bureau, the Children's Services Bureau and Jewish Family and Children's Services were the agencies that ultimately agreed to care for the refugee children. Thus, in November 1960, they appealed for federal funding, and, following the earlier recommendation from Voorhees, it was granted.<ref name="Shnookal 2020 Operation Pedro Pan and the Children Who Could Fly"/>

Baker would arrange the children's transportation and facilitate visas, Walsh would arrange for accommodations in Miami. Underground organizations led by the involved parents helped spread information. Among those who helped alert parents about the program were Penny Powers, Pancho and Bertha Finlay, Drs. Sergio and Serafina Giquel, Sara del Toro de Odio and Albertina O'Farril. To maintain confidentiality, the program's leaders in the U.S. minimized communications with their contacts in Cuba.