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I know that "average American" is a loose expression, but I did not find a better way to mean an American citizen that in this case is not interested in international relations, that is not Cuban-American, etc... For example, what percentage of people at US knows that UN has approved a resolution against the Cuba Embargo 28 years in a row since 1992? And that the only countries that have consistently voted against this resolution (that is, for the embargo) are US and Israel? (In 2016, 191 out of 193 countries approved the resolution; US and Israel abstained that year)

I am not asking if it should matter to the US domestic decisions. I am asking if this information is broadly available to the US citizens.

For who might be interested, here is the full text of the resolution "Necessity of ending the economic, commercial and financial embargo imposed by the United States of America against Cuba"

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    To be fair to them, I didn't know that. I'm British, and I imagine that like me, most won't be aware of it. These are things that happen on the diplomatic level, something that doesn't often fall on the ears of your average joe. Still, I think there is a sense that the embargo is kinda ridiculous, it's just that people don't really care.
    – PointlessSpike
    Commented Jul 27, 2015 at 7:34
  • Know? Yes. Care? No. The fact that the resolution calls it a "blockade" only shows what a ridiculous political joke the resolution is. Last time I checked, the U.S. Navy was not, in fact, blockading Cuba.
    – reirab
    Commented May 3, 2020 at 18:01
  • @reirab Thanks for your comment. Indeed, the resolution does not include the term 'blockade'. I improved the question accordingly. Anyway, even being just tangential to the original question, the term 'blockade' might not be so inadequate: "broadly: a restrictive measure designed to obstruct the commerce and communications of an unfriendly nation" merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blockade
    – curiouser
    Commented Aug 30, 2020 at 15:31
  • @curiouser Refusing to trade with a particular country is not restricting their trade or communications with any other country, which is what an actual blockade is intended to do. Perhaps I'm remembering PRs rather than the resolution text on calling it that. For example this UN PR does in the last paragraph, as does cited rhetoric from the Cuban Foreign Minister. Basically, Americans generally view the resolutions as annual political theater.
    – reirab
    Commented Aug 30, 2020 at 21:58
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    @reirab Yes, a lot of people call it a 'blockade'. You seem to ignore that the US embargo measures go far beyond the mere "refusing to trade". E.g., they are intended to enforce restrictions in/for third countries as well. Since the beginning of the resolution, several countries and companies refused to follow part of these restrictions, so it has impacted more than the 'rhetoric' or 'political theater' arena. Anyway, thanks for your 'Americans general view' perspective. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/…
    – curiouser
    Commented Sep 1, 2020 at 11:12

2 Answers 2

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According to Gallup, in February of 2015, 12% of the American public had no opinion on the re-establishment of diplomatic ties with Cuba. This is compared to 59% of people who favored re-establishing ties and 30% who opposed it.

A lot of debate in the United States on Cuba centers around some key issues: travel restrictions, basic human rights, seized property return, and the Guantanamo Bay detention facility. If you're talking about the "average" American, though, Cuba is a relatively unimportant issue. In recent polls, foreign policy/foreign aid was only a priority to about 3% of American voters. The economy and other domestic issues far outweighed this.

So to answer the question: probably not.

References:

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  • I edited your answer to include reference to the Gallup historical trend you mentioned.
    – curiouser
    Commented Jul 27, 2015 at 20:25
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It is near impossible for someone having been born in the first half of the 20th century in USA to not have known about Cuba. For most of that century, America maintained solid ties with Cuba. As mentioned by Hugh Thomas in his book Cuba: The Pursuit For Freedom: By 1926 U.S companies owned 60% of the Cuban sugar industry and imported 95% of the total Cuban crop. A good many Americans were directly or indirectly dependant on Cuban goods for their livelihood. This is why, at the time, the imposing of the embargo garnered much attention from the public.

The same hasn't held true since. Cuba has lost its significance to the US; which is why if the embargo was lifted, the only party to benefit from it would be Cuba. Today, most people are aware of the diplomatic nitty-gritty of US-Cuban ties. However, I am certain that most people do not know about the troubled past that the two have shared as neighbours.

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