The Cast of Characters in a Family Melodrama

Wednesday, the two grandmothers of Elian Gonzalez, the 6-year-old Cuban shipwreck survivor, finally got to visit their grandson. The 90-minute meeting took place only after the Immigration and Naturalization Service ordered the boy’s Miami relatives to comply in making Elian available--under threat of losing their temporary custody.

But strict conditions were imposed on the visit at the insistence of the relatives, who remained waiting in the next room. The boy was not even allowed to be alone with his grandmothers. The visit was conducted under the watchful eye of Sister Jeanne O’Laughlin, whose home in Miami was used for the visit, and two other nuns.

Wearing a large gold cross on his plaid shirt, Elian arrived for the meeting in a blue Lexus of the public-relations consultant retained by his Miami relatives and was greeted by anti-Castro pickets outside the house. One sign read, “3 Kings, 3 Children--Moses, Jesus & Elian,” reflecting the quasi-religious frenzy that seems to surround the boy’s every move in Miami.

The myth-making about Elian began within hours of his rescue on Thanksgiving Day. It was said that the “miracle child” had been saved by dolphins, who circled him and kept away sharks--though the fishermen who found him said they had not seen any dolphins. Some began to speak of him as their Moses. “The daughter of the Pharaoh took in Moses and this changed the history of the Hebrews,” wrote Miami columnist Jose Marmol. “Moses lived to lead his people out of slavery in Egypt to the promised land of Israel, an exodus that lasted 40 years--about the same as our exile from Cuba.”

In fact, so precious is Elian, say his Miami relations, that the worst thing that could befall him would be to return to his extended family in Cuba. In addition to his father, Elian has a baby half-brother, a stepmother, four grandparents and a great-grandmother there. It is an argument that baffles 70% of Americans who, in polls, have consistently supported his reunion with his family. But the Miami relatives argue that to live in Fidel Castro’s Cuba is a form of child abuse.

To achieve their goal of keeping Elian, the Miami family members have upended their lives. Lazaro Gonzalez, 49, a mechanic, his wife, Angela, 47, a factory worker, and their daughter, Marisleysis, 21, who worked at a bank, are now full-time caretakers of their new charge. Moreover, they have sought the aid and support of a small but influential group, including some of the key players in the powerful Cuban-exile lobby. They hope to win U.S. citizenship for the boy.

The Miami relatives and advisors, having claimed the role of protectors of Elian’s innocence and well-being, may well be expected to be above reproach themselves. But careful examination suggests this is hardly the case.

In fact, Elian’s great-uncles, Lazaro and Delfin Gonzalez, have another brother, Manuel, who is no longer seen with the family. Manuel is reportedly no longer welcome since he publicly stated that it was in Elian’s best interest to be returned to his father.

Perhaps Manuel Gonzalez was worried about the influence on Elian of the Gonzalez nephews, Luis and Jose Cid, frequent visitors to the house. Last week, a Miami newspaper reported that Jose Cid, 32, had been arrested at least five times since 1986 on felony charges, including robbery with force, grand theft and burglary. His twin, Luis Cid, who also has an impressive rap sheet, was most recently arrested on Sept. 7 for assault and robbery of a tourist in Little Havana.

There have also been questions about the character of the power brokers who now speak for Elian, including Jorge Mas Santos, president of the Cuban American National Foundation. It was Mas Santos, the mastermind of the campaign to keep Elian here, who put Elian on the phone to a radio station right after his visit with his grandmothers. As it turns out, Mas Santos is no stranger to interfamilial feuds and custody suits.

In 1996, Mas Santos’ father, Jorge Mas Canosa, was sued by his mistress of 20 years, who alleged he had failed to make support payments for their son. Mas Canosa denied paternity but refused to take a blood test. He even found a Miami judge to rule in his favor. But when an appeals court, in a scathing opinion, reversed that judge’s ruling, he quickly paid out a multimillion-dollar settlement.

The boy, who bears a striking resemblance to Mas Canosa, has yet to receive a visit from his half-brother, Jorge Mas Santos, according to a lawyer involved with the case, or even a phone call inquiring about his well-being.

Mas Santos’ business ethics have also been questioned. Just last week, a Miami grand jury singled out a $58-million paving contract one of his companies. According to the Miami Herald, the county “paid millions of dollars for asphalt and road striping that it cannot find.” Mas Santos’ company is now “the focus of a criminal investigation,” and has been barred from further contracts with Miami-Dade County.

The family court judge who first oversaw Elian’s case is also not above the fray. Judge Rosa Rodriguez made the ruling that she, not the INS or federal court, had jurisdiction over the case. She then made the boy’s great-uncle his temporary guardian. But the next day, it was learned that Rodriguez, a judge for only 13 months, had not disclosed that she had previous ties to Armando Gutierrez, the PR consultant representing Elian’s Miami relatives. She had paid him and his wife more than $63,000 for consulting during her judicial campaign in 1998. In addition, Rodriguez has been under investigation since her September 1998 election for possible campaign-finance violations.

Gutierrez, who has orchestrated the “Truman Show” of Elian Gonzalez, is one of the top political consultants in the area, described by the Miami Herald as “a master of opposition research” with “a reputation for hardball tactics.” Gutierrez insists he is acting out of heartfelt compassion for the boy, but a former colleague describes him as someone who “goes after your throat. He believes he must destroy you.”

Demetrio Perez has given Elian a full scholarship to his privately run Lincoln-Marti School. There, according to the Herald, the boy will be taught a conservative philosophy: that “he lives in a Christian society and should support school prayer in public and private schools. He should oppose abortion, homosexuality and racism . . . and we in no way support Cuba or people in Cuba who believe in that system.” The school’s primary textbook, written by Perez, teaches that “Richard Nixon got a raw deal when he was forced to resign as president and that Americans now regret this and honor him.”

Though Sister O’Laughlin was chosen as a neutral mediator for the reunion, the day after the visit she issued her own strong opinions that the child should be kept in Miami. She later went further, insisting, “I do not think that child will be able to live without fear if he goes back.” Moreover, during the brief visit, one of the nuns handed Elian’s maternal grandmother a note from her half-sister in Miami, who reportedly wants her to defect.

Then there is the relatives’ most powerful advocate, Rep. Dan Burton (R-Ind.), who issued a subpoena to young Elian to testify before Congress and is championing the move to give the boy citizenship. Burton may be particularly qualified in paternity and custody matters. In 1998, it was revealed that Burton, who campaigned on family values, had fathered a child 16 years ago with a woman other than his wife. News reports disclosed that he had no relationship with this son and even declined to put his name on the boy’s birth certificate.

Somehow this peculiar group has fastened itself to the hapless Elian. No doubt they sincerely believe that 24-hour media attention is in the child’s best interest, as is having serve as a prop in the Miami political circus.

We’re told it is all for a good purpose--the good fight. For the Miami family insists that the child cannot be reunited with his father and Cuba family at any cost. After all, they are guilty as charged: They live in Cuba.