Surfside Six, A Race to the Sand chronicles the efforts to identify and intercept six Cuban migrants attempting to illegally enter the United States from the sandy beaches of Miami and Surfside, Florida. The author guides readers from the boat docks of Coast Guard Station Miami Beach to command centers, the desk of the Commandant of the Coast Guard, the offices of elected leaders within the hallowed halls of the U.S. Congress, and the situation rooms of the U.S. Attorney General and the Presidents of the United States and the Republic of Cuba. This historical nonfiction account showcases the high-tempo interdiction efforts of the Coast Guard’s largest and busiest multi-mission station, Station Miami Beach. Author Jim Mathieu has over 28 years of Coast Guard law enforcement and search and rescue experience, including both ashore and afloat operations and command.  

Prepare to be taken back to the beginning of an ordinary Coast Guard day that quickly escalates into an international incident involving the use of force, broadcast live on television. This interdiction was captured in real-time, bringing dramatic events into the living rooms and cafés of Little Havana’s vibrant and historic Cuban neighborhoods, filled with divisive exiles in a geopolitically charged electoral climate in Southeast Florida.

Surfside Six begins when the 36th President, Lyndon Baines Johnson (Democrat-TX), signed the Cuban Adjustment Act on November 2, 1966. This Act aimed to provide a pathway to lawful permanent residency for Cuban refugees and their families. In the late 1970s, the 39th President, James (Jimmy) Earl Carter Jr. (Democrat-GA), sought to enhance relations with Cuba and lifted all travel restrictions to the island. In 1995, after then-Cuban President Fidel Castro announced that Cubans could leave the island by boat, the 42nd President, William Jefferson Clinton (Democrat-AR), in consultation with the Cuban government, enacted a policy that prohibited the admission of individuals intercepted in U.S. waters. This action initiated the “Wet Feet, Dry Feet” policy.

Surfside Six showcases a compelling display of leadership, followership, and life-or-death decision-making as Coast Guard law enforcement officers become entangled in a political battle during a presidential election year under the Clinton administration’s controversial “Wet Feet, Dry Feet” policy. 

The narrative recounts an emotional story of leadership, human error, political maneuvering, highly skilled seamanship, and thoughtful decision-making, despite some individuals in the administration’s chain of command holding a narrow perspective, which ultimately shaped history and influenced changes in United States and Coast Guard policy. You will learn how junior Coast Guard law enforcement officers on the scene acted during crucial moments, while senior personnel in command centers challenged and directed their on-scene decision-making.  

The author details Coast Guard leadership decision-making, the political agendas of metropolitan and micropolitan areas, and the procedures that Coast Guard Station Miami law enforcement officers follow as they enforce laws and occasionally ambiguous policies enacted by our elected officials.  

The author’s firsthand experience invites the reader to feel the tension, risk, and danger of what seems like a routine interdiction of illegal migrants attempting to enter the United States. You will feel as if you are in a command position, whether in the surf on Coast Guard small boats or in command centers at every level of government, making recommendations and decisions.