Carmen Bernal holds up the Cuban flag that her mother put on display outside their house the day Fidel Castro rose to power in 1959.

Carmen Bernal holds up the Cuban flag that her mother put on display outside their house the day Fidel Castro rose to power in 1959. / On Second Thought

This weekend, Delta will begin selling flights from Atlanta to Havana, Cuba for the first time in almost 55 years. When diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba broke down in the early 1960s, a mass exodus of 14,000 children left Cuba for America as part of a large campaign called Operation Pedro Pan. Carmen Bernal ended up in Milledgeville, Georgia. We look back on our conversation with the Georgia State University language professor as she shared her story. 

Carmen Bernal holds up her Cuban passport that she had when she arrived in the U.S. in 1961.

Carmen Bernal holds up her Cuban passport that she had when she arrived in the U.S. in 1961. / On Second Thought

Tags: children  Cuba  Delta  Atlanta  Georgia