Cuba Since 1959

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

4 CUBA SINCE 1959 Fulgencio Batista had been the dominant figure in Cuban national affairs for a quarter of a century. He had ruled Cuba, directly or indirectly, since the military coup of 4 September 1933, except for an interlude of Autentico rule from 1944 to 1952. He had seemed confident and powerful until the last weeks of his last presidency. But suddenly Batista was gone. I On New Year's Eve 1958 he quit, taking with him much of the top echelon of his government. A new leader, young and bearded, who for two years had led a guerri11a war in eastern Cuba, graduaUy spreading the influence of his forces to the western provinces, slowly assuming the leadership of the urban and the rural resistance to the Batista regime, marched into Havana. Audacious and effective in his military campaign and political skiUs, persuasive and commanding in his public speech, Fidel Castro had become the leader of the future. Power had passed, somewhat unexpectedly, to a new generation of Cubans. In January 1959 the old regime coUapsed in Cuba and a revolution came to power. The old rules of the game no longer applied and the armed forces that had shaped the life of independent Cuba for so long had crumbled. The rebel army became the defender of the new revolutionary state, sweeping aside the parties that had structure<l political life in previ ous decades. Only the Communist party (Partido Socialista Popular, PSP), which had been banned by Batista in the 1950s but reappeared in 1959, was left intact. The faU of the old regime required that new norms, rules and institutions be devised to replace those that had coUapsed or been overthrown. The history of Cuba during the next thirty years addressed the needs of revolutionary creativity, the persistent commitment to create order out oLrevolution, the need to uphold a revolutionary faith in the implementation of that new order. 95 \ .

Copy Link

Recommended publications

Overview Print Page Close Window
World Directory of Minorities Americas MRG Directory –> Cuba –> Cuba Overview Print Page Close Window Cuba Overview Environment Peoples History Governance Current state of minorities and indigenous peoples Environment Cuba is the largest island in the Caribbean. It is located 150 kilometres south of the tip of the US state of Florida and east of the Yucatán Peninsula. On the east, Cuba is separated by the Windward Passage from Hispaniola, the island shared by Haiti and Dominican Republic. The total land area is 114,524 sq km, which includes the Isla de la Juventud (formerly called Isle of Pines) and other small adjacent islands. Peoples Main languages: Spanish Main religions: Christianity (Roman Catholic, Protestant), syncretic African religions The majority of the population of Cuba is 51% mulatto (mixed white and black), 37% white, 11% black and 1% Chinese (CIA, 2001). However, according to the Official 2002 Cuba Census, 65% of the population is white, 10% black and 25% mulatto. Although there are no distinct indigenous communities still in existence, some mixed but recognizably indigenous Ciboney-Taino-Arawak-descended populations are still considered to have survived in parts of rural Cuba. Furthermore the indigenous element is still in evidence, interwoven as part of the overall population's cultural and genetic heritage. There is no expatriate immigrant population. More than 75 per cent of the population is classified as urban. The revolutionary government, installed in 1959, has generally destroyed the rigid social stratification inherited from Spanish colonial rule. During Spanish colonial rule (and later under US influence) Cuba was a major sugar-producing territory.
[Show full text]
Race and Inequality in Cuban Tourism During the 21St Century
California State University, San Bernardino CSUSB ScholarWorks Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations Office of aduateGr Studies 6-2015 Race and Inequality in Cuban Tourism During the 21st Century Arah M. Parker California State University - San Bernardino Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd Part of the Politics and Social Change Commons, Race and Ethnicity Commons, Social and Cultural Anthropology Commons, and the Tourism Commons Recommended Citation Parker, Arah M., "Race and Inequality in Cuban Tourism During the 21st Century" (2015). Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations. 194. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd/194 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Office of aduateGr Studies at CSUSB ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of CSUSB ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. RACE AND INEQUALITY IN CUBAN TOURISM DURING THE 21 ST CENTURY A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of California State University, San Bernardino In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts in Social Sciences by Arah Marie Parker June 2015 RACE AND INEQUALITY IN CUBAN TOURISM DURING THE 21 ST CENTURY A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of California State University, San Bernardino by Arah Marie Parker June 2015 Approved by: Dr. Teresa Velasquez, Committee Chair, Anthropology Dr. James Fenelon, Committee Member Dr. Cherstin Lyon, Committee Member © 2015 Arah Marie Parker ABSTRACT As the largest island in the Caribbean, Cuba boasts beautiful scenery, as well as a rich and diverse culture.
[Show full text]
CELIA and FIDEL the Cuban Revolution Profile: Fidel Castro Profile: Celia Sánchez Cuba-U.S
ARENA’S PAGE STUDY GUIDE THE PLAY Meet the Playwright Key Terms CELIA AND FIDEL The Cuban Revolution Profile: Fidel Castro Profile: Celia Sánchez Cuba-U.S. Relations Asylum-Seekers at the Peruvian Embassy and the Mariel Boatlift Three Big Questions Resources THE PLAY Fidel Castro, the political leader of Cuba and its revolution, is celebrating. Cuba’s support of the socialists in Angola (see article) is succeeding and, to him, it represents Cuba’s growing influence and power in the world. Celia Sánchez, his fellow revolutionary and most trusted political advisor, wants him to focus on his upcoming speech to the United Nations. She also urges him to face the realities in Cuba, where the people are clamoring for change and freedom. Fidel refuses. BY Consuelo, a spy and Fidel’s protégée, EDUARDO MACHADO arrives. She tells Fidel that Manolo, DIRECTED BY MOLLY SMITH a former revolutionary, is in Havana to meet with him. Manolo now works NOW PLAYING IN THE KOGOD CRADLE | FEBRUARY 28 - APRIL 12, 2020 for the U.S. government and is in Cuba on behalf of President Carter to discuss ending the trade embargo. “But, things are changing. People that grew up under our revolution are Their meeting is interrupted with unhappy. I think we have not given them enough things to dream and work for. startling news: hundreds of Cubans have stormed the Peruvian embassy They know about the world. And they want their own voice.” in Havana, asking the Peruvian — Celia Sánchez, Celia and Fidel government to help them leave Cuba. Will Fidel be able to cooperate with Celia, Manolo and Consuelo Celia and Fidel was generously commissioned by Drs.
[Show full text]
Presidential Brief: the Situation in Cuba
Resource Sheet #1 Presidential Brief: The Situation in Cuba Why was Cuba a concern for the United States in the 1950s? U.S. worries in the Caribbean and Central America, however, did not end with Arbenz. On the contrary, Cuba was an even bigger concern in the 1950s. Politically, Cuba had been fairly stable since Fulgencio Batista seized power from a reform-minded government in 1934. Washington supported Batista as a strongman who would maintain order on the island and not upset U.S. interests. Even after Batista’s defeat in elections in 1944, Cuba remained close to the United States. At the same time, though, official corruption and raft were mounting. Hope for reform suffered a setback when Batista staged a coup to take power in 1952. Few Cubans expected the Batista regime to tolerate democratic change in their country. As a result, resentment against the government grew during the 1950s. Few Americans were aware of Cuba’s political troubles. In the United States, Cuba was known best as a glamorous resort. A boom in tourism to the island began in the 1920s and reshaped Cuba’s image. Cuba was associated with casinos, nightclubs, and tropical beaches. American money helped provide Havana with more Cadillacs per capita than any city in the world during the 1950s. But the wealth also brought problems to Cuba. By the 1950s, American organized crime was firmly established on the island, along with drugs and prostitution. Economically, Cuba could claim one of the highest per capita incomes in Latin America. In reality, however, many Cubans could not find full-time employment, especially in the country side.
[Show full text]
Fidel Castro
History in the Making Volume 10 Article 10 January 2017 In Memoriam: Fidel Castro Andria Preciado CSUSB Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/history-in-the-making Part of the Latin American History Commons Recommended Citation Preciado, Andria (2017) "In Memoriam: Fidel Castro," History in the Making: Vol. 10 , Article 10. Available at: https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/history-in-the-making/vol10/iss1/10 This In Memoriam is brought to you for free and open access by the History at CSUSB ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in History in the Making by an authorized editor of CSUSB ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. In Memoriam In Memoriam: Fidel Castro By Andria Preciado “A revolution is a struggle to the death between the future and the past.” – Fidel Castro Fidel Castro died on November 25, 2016 at 90 years old in Havana, Cuba, after a dictatorship that lasted nearly five decades. Castro was a staple of the 20th century and an emblem of the Cold War. He was either loved or hated by those he encountered – national leaders and civilians alike – some were swayed by his charm and others fled from his brutal leadership. The Russians praised him; the Americans feared him; the world was perplexed by him; and his impact changed Cuba forever. Even after Castro’s death, people were still drawn to him; crowds mourned his passing in Havana, while others celebrated his death in the United States. The radically different reactions to his death across the globe stands as a testament to the revolutionary legacy he left behind.
[Show full text]
Fulgencio Batista and Populism in Cuba, –*
J. Lat. Amer. Stud. , – Printed in the United Kingdom # Cambridge University Press The Architect of the Cuban State: Fulgencio Batista and Populism in Cuba, –* ROBERT WHITNEY Abstract. This article examines how Fulgencio Batista y Zaldı!var emerged as the ‘strong man’ of Cuba. Historians have pointed out that from to Batista’s primary support came from the army and the police. We also know that, like many other Latin American leaders at the time, Batista went through a ‘populist phase’. Populists acknowledged the reality that ‘the masses’ were a new force in society and that ‘the people’ were at the centre of the nation and the state. Populist discourse functioned to construct a ‘people’ out of fragmented and scattered populations. Batista was very aware that in order to rule Cuba he had to appeal to ‘the people’ and to the revolutionary sentiments of . But we need more information about exactly what Batista’s political ideas were and how he put them into practice. This article shows how Batista became, in his own words, the ‘architect’ of the post-revolutionary state between and . Batista supervised Cuba’s transition from a military dictatorship in to a nominal constitutional democracy in . The aim is to shed some light on how this remarkable transition took place. Between the s and the early s the combined pressures of mass mobilisation, revolution, economic crisis and the threat of foreign intervention from the United States compelled Cuban politicians from across the ideological spectrum to come to terms with the clases populares " as a factor in national and international politics.
[Show full text]
The Toro Historical Review 0
THE TORO HISTORICAL REVIEW 0 The Revolutionary Effect: An Analysis of the Afro-Cuban Perspective Italie Torres California State University, Dominguez Hills August 2019 THE TORO HISTORICAL REVIEW 1 After the overthrow of the pro U.S. dictatorship in 1959, Fidel Castro, who promoted a deep sense of nationalism through socialism, came into power and made it illegal to discriminate against anyone based on race. Castro and other revolutionary leaders despised the racist United States who had a strong hold over the island for decades. During the Revolution, it became a social taboo to differentiate Cubans of color making it impossible to speak out on the subject creating a sense of racial silence over the years. This silencing, in effect, has challenged scholarly analysis of what the social revolution accomplished in terms of the lived experiences of Afro-Cubans. The Revolution’s aim was to bring about racial equality, and some scholars indeed suggest that there was a divergence of African and Spanish culture on the island which created “the new Cuban,” but this analysis disregards the prevailing systemic issues faced by those of color.1 According to Castro, Cuba so-called “solved the racism issue.”2 However, this study aims to analyze the continuation of racial discrimination within the context of the Cuban Revolution and its relationship to the United States. Scholars who concern themselves with race in Cuba include Ada Ferrer, Alejandro De La Fuente, Aline Helg, and Esteban Morales Dominguez. Ada Ferrer’s work is key to understanding Cuban nationalist rhetoric. She focuses on the post-independent years and argues that Cuba became a “raceless nation.”3 Both white and black Cubans banded together to fight against colonialism and neocolonialism, creating a nationalistic ideology.
[Show full text]
The Cuban Revolution
Document No. 10. The Cuban Revolution Fidel Castro Ruz, “History Will Absolve Me,” October 16, 1953 On July 26, 1953, Fidel Castro, a lawyer and a member of the Orthodox Party, led a group of Cuban revolutionaries on an attack of the Moncada military barracks in Santiago de Cuba. The action was an attempt to secure weapons to support the movement to overthrow the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista. Arrested and sentenced to fifteen years in prison, Fidel Castro offered a four-hour speech in the defense of the movement he led. It later was published as a manifesto of the July 26th Movement that successfully overthrew the Batista government and took power in 1959. The speech called for rather modest reforms, such as a reinstatement of the 1940 Cuban constitution, rights of industrial and sugar workers to a share of company profits, and moderate land reform. It is considered an early declaration of the goals of the Cuban Revolution. HONORABLE JUDGES: Never has a lawyer had to practice his profession under such difficult conditions; never has such a number of overwhelming irregularities been committed against an accused man. In this case, counsel and defendant are one and the same. As attorney he has not even been able to take a look at the indictment. As accused, for the past seventy-six days he has been locked away in solitary confinement, held totally and absolutely incommunicado, in violation of every human and legal right. He who speaks to you hates vanity with all his being, nor are his temperament or frame of mind inclined towards courtroom poses or sensationalism of any kind.
[Show full text]
Tuberculosis, Public Health, and Politics in Cuba, 1925–1965
THE SICK REPUBLIC: TUBERCULOSIS, PUBLIC HEALTH, AND POLITICS IN CUBA, 1925–1965 by Kelly Lauren Urban Bachelor of Arts, Texas A&M University, 2007 Master of Arts, University of Pittsburgh, 2012 Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of The Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Pittsburgh 2017 UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH THE KENNETH P. DIETRICH SCHOOL OF ARTS AND SCIENCES This dissertation was presented by Kelly Urban It was defended on March 16, 2017 and approved by Lara Putnam, Professor and Chair, Department of History Werner Troesken, Professor, Department of Economics Mari Webel, Assistant Professor, Department of History Co-Chair: George Reid Andrews, Distinguished Professor, Department of History Co-Chair: Alejandro de la Fuente, Robert Woods Bliss Professor of Latin American History and Economics, Department of History, Harvard University ii Copyright © by Kelly Urban 2017 iii THE SICK REPUBLIC: TUBERCULOSIS, PUBLIC HEALTH, AND POLITICS IN CUBA, 1925–1965 Kelly Urban, PhD University of Pittsburgh, 2017 This dissertation explores the politics of disease control in Cuba during the mid-twentieth century, and uses tuberculosis as a lens to understand citizenship, state-building, and populism. By analyzing the popular press, health reports, medical journals, and official correspondence in U.S. and Cuban archives, it argues that ordinary citizens, public intellectuals, and civic actors in the interwar era—not the revolutionary government of 1959—introduced the concept of a “right to health” and invoked it to demand an efficient state healthcare sector. In response to these claims and in his quest to strengthen the state, Fulgencio Batista created the Consejo Nacional de Tuberculosis in 1936.
[Show full text]
Fidel Castro and the Cuban Revolution
Headwaters Volume 24 Article 4 2007 Fidel Castro and the Cuban Revolution Gary Prevost College of St. Benedict/St. John's University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.csbsju.edu/headwaters Part of the Latin American Studies Commons, and the Political Science Commons Recommended Citation Prevost, Gary (2007) "Fidel Castro and the Cuban Revolution," Headwaters: Vol. 24, 19-33. Available at: https://digitalcommons.csbsju.edu/headwaters/vol24/iss1/4 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@CSB/SJU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Headwaters by an authorized editor of DigitalCommons@CSB/SJU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. GARY PREVOST Fidel Castro and the Cuban Revolution The life of Fidel Castro is inextricably bound up with the story of the Cuban Revo- lution. In modern times no revolutionary movement is more identified with a single person. However, it would be a serious mistake to reduce the Cuban Revolution to the story of Fidel Castro. Countless analysts, especially within the ranks of the U.S. government, have made that error. This essay will seek to briefly tell the story of Fidel Castro and the revolution that he has led for more than fifty years. The author will conclude that Fidel Castro has left his mark on Cuban life in a way that will likely endure well after his death, whenever that comes. Fidel Castro Ruz was born on August 13, 1926 on his family’s sugar plantation near Biran, Oriente province. His father, originally an immigrant laborer from Galicia, Spain had become the owner of a 23-acre plantation.
[Show full text]
November 25, 1956 the Granma Sets Sail from Mexico
This Month in Latin American History The Granma, as it would have looked in 1956 November 25, 1956 The Granma Sets Sail from Mexico In 1955, having won an uncontested election to validate his reign as president of Cuba, Fulgencio Batista issued a pardon for the nation’s political prisoners, which included both Fidel and Raul Castro, who had been imprisoned for their failed attempt to spark a revolution against Batista on July 26, 1953. Taking advantage of this opportunity, the brothers fled to Mexico, where they began to re-form their organization, which they now dubbed the 26th of July movement. Working with other Cuban exiles (and the Argentine doctor Ernesto “Che” Guevara) and with rebels in the city of Santiago de Cuba, Castro made plans to lead a squad of exiles back to Cuba, with his arrival timed to coincide with an uprising in the city. In October of 1956 he bought the yacht Granma, wanting to use an ordinary civilian craft that would not arouse suspicion. However, the Granma was not fit for the voyage, nor was it built to accommodate the 82 men who set out for Cuba in late November. Castro and his forces arrived late, and the Cuban army was prepared for their arrival- only about 20 men made it off the beach outside of Santiago, fleeing into the mountains in hopes of keeping their movement alive. Today, Granma is the name of the official newspaper of the Cuban Communist Party. Want to know more? Take Latin American History! Contact Prof. Greg Hammond at [email protected] .
[Show full text]
March 24, 1962 Telegram from Polish Embassy in Havana (Jeleń), 24 March 1962
Digital Archive digitalarchive.wilsoncenter.org International History Declassified March 24, 1962 Telegram from Polish Embassy in Havana (Jeleń), 24 March 1962 Citation: “Telegram from Polish Embassy in Havana (Jeleń), 24 March 1962,” March 24, 1962, History and Public Policy Program Digital Archive, Szyfrogramy from Hawana 1962, 6/77 w-82 t-1264, Polish Foreign Ministry Archive (AMSZ), Warsaw. Obtained by James G. Hershberg (George Washington University) and translated by Margaret K. Gnoinska (Troy University). http://digitalarchive.wilsoncenter.org/document/115741 Summary: Jelen relays information presented by Blas Roca and Emilio Aragones Navarro on the ORI's decision to exclude Anibal Escalante from the leadership of the ORI. Credits: This document was made possible with support from the Leon Levy Foundation. Original Language: Polish Contents: English Translation Ciphergram No. 4098 Dispatched from Havana on 03.24.1962 at 18:00 and received at 03.25.1962 at 14:53 Came to the Decoding Department at 03.25.1962 at 19:30 To: [Director General Jerzy] MICHALOWSKI, EYES ONLY From: [Ambassador Boleslaw] JELEN 1 I. I am relaying the information presented today by Blas Roca 2 and Emilio Aragonés [Navarro] 3 (secretary of the ORI [Organizaciones Revolucionarias Intergradas4] to the heads of the diplomatic posts of the countries of the socialist camp. They asked that we relay this information to the central committees of [our] parties. On the 22nd of this month, the national leadership of the ORI made a decision to exclude Anibal Escalante from the leadership of the ORI. A. E. remains a member of the ORI, but he’s been removed from all the leadership positions.
[Show full text]