Talia was struggling to make ends meet as a bartender in Santiago, Cuba, when a friend told her about a lucrative job opportunity in Suriname. The 26-year-old mother — who asked to be identified by a pseudonym to protect her privacy — had never heard of the Dutch-speaking country nearly 2,000 miles away. But the promise of a job that would help her provide for her family was too much to ignore. Santiago is Cuba’s second largest city and the home of Bacardi rum, but Talia said it offered few prospects for her: Wages there are low, and many people live without consistent running water or electricity. Talia was living in Santiago, Cuba (above), when she was offered a lucrative job in Suriname.
