Elián González Brotons (born December 6, 1993) is a Cuban technician who, as a child, became embroiled in a heated international custody and immigration controversy in 2000 involving the governments of Cuba and the United States, his father Juan Miguel González Quintana, his other relatives in Cuba and in Miami, and Miami's Cuban community.
González's mother Elizabeth Brotons Rodríguez drowned in November 1999 while attempting to leave Cuba with González and her boyfriend to get to the United States. Elián Gonzalez was five years old when found nestled in an inner tube floating at sea three miles from Florida's Fort Lauderdale coast. Two fishermen found Elián and reluctantly handed him over to the U.S. Coast Guard, as they feared he would be sent back to Cuba under the wet feet, dry feet policy since he had not yet reached land. The Coast Guard assured them that Elián would be taken "ashore for medical reasons," deeming him eligible to stay.: 152 Elián was immediately taken to a hospital and treated for dehydration and minor cuts on his body. It was later found that Elián's mother, Elisabeth Brotons Rodríguez, and Lázaro Munero García, her common-law husband, had escaped Cárdenas, Cuba, as part of a group with 14 refugees on a 17 ft (5.2 m) boat. However, the others died in a storm, while a young couple escaped to the shore, and Elián was found.
Once he had been treated, the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) provided Elián with a temporary deferral regarding his inspection, and further released Elián to his great-uncle, Lázaro González, who lived with his family in Miami's Little Havana. These relatives informed the family in Cárdenas to prepare for an extreme hardship visa waiver. The former were told the next day that "some functionary of the government would be coming to get the boy" as a result of Fidel Castro's having met with Juan Miguel, Elián's father.: 153 The involvement of the Cuban Communist leader in the case and the subsequent diplomatic note written to the U.S. Department of State emphasizing the father's demand for Elián's repatriation attracted international attention. This is because Elián had become a "symbol to many exiles" reminding them of the solidarity of the Cuban exile community and its privileged status with economic refugee criteria.: 153 While Elián escaped both Cuba and death, he soon entered custody battles waged by his father, Miami relatives, and state officials from the U.S. and Cuba.
The international tug of war waged between the Cuban and American relatives and state officials can be understood through the agendas of Fidel Castro, the Cuban-American uncle Lázaro González representing the Miami relatives and the Miami Cuban expat community, and the U.S. government representative, Attorney General Janet Reno. In the case of Fidel Castro, he sought to showcase his power by first issuing an ultimatum to the U.S. that the boy should be returned to his father within 72 hours.On January 10, 2000, a Florida state court had ruled that the Florida family court was able to decide the merit of motion related with temporary custody by Lázaro González, stating that Elián should stay with the Miami relatives until a further custody hearing. However, Reno declared that the federal courts are responsible for deciding this case, and that the Miami relatives must appeal to the federal court. Here, the objective of Reno was to provide the relatives with a chance to provide "any information" they could that would be "relevant in the decision". She again emphasized that the INS commissioner had declared that the father speaks for the son, and that his wishes were to have his son returned to him.
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