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The restored Freedom Tower is often called "Miami's Ellis Island." The imposing edifice stands as an enduring symbol of freedom and the promise of the American Dream to millions. Between 1892 and 1943, 16 million immigrants had their naturalization papers processed there. From the early 1960s through the '70s, it was the first stop for nearly 400,000 Cuban refugees who arrived in South Florida by raft, boat, or other means. To say it holds symbolic and sentimental value for these passionate, outspoken people is a strong understatement.
As a symbol, it is sometimes the site for protests, hunger strikes, marches, rallies, prayer vigils, or other activities. Activity around the Freedom Tower tends to heat up as does the action in Cuba.
The tower, modeled after the Giralda bell tower on the cathedral of Seville, Spain, was built in 1925. Though remodeled, the Freedom Tower is largely unoccupied. The Cuban American National Foundation presented an exhibit of civil rights abuses in Cuba at the tower on the eve of Pope John Paul II's visit to Cuba in 1998. The tower also has been used as a collection spot for relief supplies for Nicaraguan victims of Hurricane Mitch later that same year.
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