This week, we’re participating in a national week of conversation along with other NPR member stations called A Nation Engaged. It’s a coordinated conversation around a topic, and the goal is to get a wide variety of voices answering the same question.
We’re asking: What does it mean to be American? And what could the next president do to advance your vision?
Fernando Martinez is one of Kentucky’s almost 8,000 self-employed immigrants. Martinez came to the United States from Cuba in the 1990’s on a raft he built himself. A long journey took him to the refugee camp at Guantanamo Bay and San Diego before he finally settled in Louisville in 1996.
Martinez opened Havana Rumba in 2005, and now owns seven restaurants in the city. He says America means freedom, liberty and opportunity. And that the next president needs to go back to those ideals.
WFPL’s Roxanne Scott spoke with the restaurateur about why many immigrants open restaurants and what entrepreneurship means to him.
