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Women's Liberation During the 1953 Cuban Revolution

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Women's Liberation During the 1953 Cuban Revolution Women’s Liberation During the 1953 Cuban Revolution Anna-Lise Bissola In 1952, President Fulgencio Batista used military force to seize control of the government, evoking widespread discontent amongst the Cuban people.1 In response to President Batista’s dictatorial regime, Fidel Castro and his followers organized and implemented an assault on the Moncada military barracks in Santiago de Cuba on July 26th, 1953.2 Although the attack itself was unsuccessful and led to Castro’s incarceration, it represented the beginning of the insurrection period of the Cuban Revolution lasting from 1953 until 1958.3 In a speech during his trial, Castro criticized the Batista government and outlined the goals and intended outcomes of his revolution.4 Following his release from prison, Castro and his supporters left Cuba for Mexico, where he formally organized the 26th of July Movement, named in memory of the Moncada attack.5 While in Mexico, Castro began to formulate his military strategy, which primarily involved grassroots movements and the formation of a guerilla army.6 Throughout Cuba, revolts played a part in strengthening the rebels and spreading anti-Batista sentiment across the country.7 Furthermore, the utilization of guerilla tactics allowed Castro to successfully invade Cuba, overthrow Batista, and implement new government institutions.8 People from all sectors of society were incorporated into the ranks of the 26th of July Movement, including those who suffered the most during Batista’s dictatorship, such as peasants, workers, and other marginalized groups.9 Women’s experiences of injustice and subjugation under previous Cuban leaders contributed to their desire for reform and gender equality. As a result, Cuban women made significant contributions to the revolutionary efforts, believing that Castro would be successful in reconstructing Cuba’s oppressive institutions and achieving women’s liberation. Although the reforms implemented during the revolution and following decades aimed to alleviate 1 Gladys Marel Garcia-Perez, Insurrection and Revolution: Armed Struggle in Cuba, 1952-1959 (Colorado: Lynn Rienner Publishers Inc., 1998), 60. 2 Aleia Guitan, “Cuban Revolutionary Women,” Temas de Nuestra America, no. 50 (2011): 156. 3 Lorraine Bayard de Volo, “A Revolution in the Binary? Gender and the Oxymoron of Revolutionary War in Cuba and Nicaragua,” Signs 37, no. 2 (2012): 413. 4 Fidel Castro, “History Will Absolve Me. The Moncada Trial Defense,” (speech, Santiago, October 16th, 1953), Marxist History Archive, https://www.marxists.org/history/cuba/archive/ castro/1953/10/16.html. 5 Ibid. 7. 6 Ibid. 10. 7 Herbert Matthews, “Old Order in Cuba is Threatened by Forces of an Internal Revolt,” The New York Times, (New York, NY) Feb 26, 1957. 8 Ibid. 11. 9 Gladys Marel Garcia-Perez, Insurrection and Revolution: Armed Struggle in Cuba, 1952-1959 (Colorado: Lynn Rienner Publishers Inc., 1998), 66. 34 systemic discrimination and oppression, they were not sufficient in addressing the cultural and ideological issues that reinforced gender inequalities. During the past two decades there has been increased discussion concerning Cuban women’s experiences, as scholars attempt to re-evaluate the revolution’s ability to achieve gender equality. In her paper, Lorraine Bayard de Volo argues that multiple hierarchies existed within the ranks of the guerilla army.10 Despite the revolutionary promise to liberate Cuban women, “the devaluation and rejection of the feminine worked to maintain gender hierarchy.”11 In her work “The ‘Woman Question’ in Cuba: An Analysis of Material Constraints on Its Solution” Muriel Nazzari points out the irony within the revolution’s supposed ideals of equality. She reminds the reader of Castro’s emphasis on women entering the workforce and freeing them from “domestic slavery”.12 However, when he assumed power in 1959, providing men with work was prioritized by the revolutionary government in the first five years of its rule.13 She also notes how the government’s priority shifted to women already employed rather than women who were unable to work.14 Johanna Fabregas explains in her article that Castro held a paternalistic attitude towards women rather than one of equality and genuine support.15 She argues that the revolutionary state formed a new patriarchal language, enforcing the idea that women needed the government for protection and guidance.16 At the center of this is Castro, who acts as “the embodiment of the revolution, [and is] represented as the paternal and virile mentor who would steer the contribution of women to the nation.”17 Recent feminist scholarship has addressed the argument that the Cuban Revolution contributed to women’s lack of independence, rather than fulfilling its promise of liberation. This essay will contribute to the current literature by focusing on the significant roles women played in the revolution, followed by an examination of the revolutionary state and the reformed institutions created to achieve gender equality. 10 Lorraine Bayard de Volo, “A Revolution in the Binary? Gender and the Oxymoron of Revolutionary War in Cuba and Nicaragua,” Signs 37, no. 2 (2012): 414. 11 Ibid. 415. 12 Muriel Nazzari, “The ‘Woman Question’ in Cuba: An Analysis of Material Constraints on Its Solution,” Signs 9, no. 2 (1983): 246. 13 Ibid. 254. 14 Ibid. 254. 15 Johanna Fabregas, “The Cuban Women’s Revolutionary Experience: Patriarchal Culture and the State’s Gender Ideology, 1950-1975,” Journal of Women’s History 22, no. 1 (2010): 69. 16 Ibid. 70. 17 Ibid. 70. 35 The conditions leading up to the revolution were an essential factor in gaining the support of Cuba’s female population. Cuban society preceding the revolution enforced women’s domesticity, which contributed to the rigid dichotomy between the roles performed by men and women. In the nineteenth century, the Cuban economy was dependent on the institution of slavery on sugar plantations, which centered around the division of labour between men and women.18 Afro-Cuban men were required to perform the physical labour necessary to cut cane, while women were responsible for either collecting cane or working as domestic servants.19 Additionally, Cuban women were expected to be passive members of society and to focus on their relationships with men and their families.20 This created two spheres where men and women existed separately, reflecting the different social expectations placed on both genders.21 Batista’s government solidified Cuba’s patriarchal system that subordinated women, forcing them into motherhood and household positions.22 Furthermore, Cuba’s economy was structured in a way that discouraged women’s participation in the paid labour force by failing to provide them with equal opportunities.23 Between 1952 and 1958, women only made up 17% of Cuba’s workforce, and of these women many received “significantly lower compensation” 24 for performing the same jobs as men.25 Along with high levels of unemployment, the experiences of Cuban women included “prostitution, sexual violence, illiteracy, […] and sexism.”26 Women were one of the largest demographics impacted by illiteracy in Cuba, especially within peasant communities in rural areas.27 Often, women of this status attempted to improve their situation by arguing that they would be “better fit to raise honest and productive male citizens who would lead the nation in the right 18 Nicola Murray, “Socialism and Feminism: Women and the Cuban Revolution, Part One,” Feminist Review, no. 2 (1979): 60. 19 Ibid. 60. 20 Ibid. 60. 21 Nicola Murray, “Socialism and Feminism: Women and the Cuban Revolution, Part One,” Feminist Review, no. 2 (1979): 60. 22 Salim Lamrani, “Women in Cuba: The Emancipatory Revolution,” The International Journal of Cuban Studies 8, no. 1 (2016): 114. 23 Nicola Murray, “Socialism and Feminism: Women and the Cuban Revolution, Part One,” Feminist Review, no. 2 (1979): 64. 24 Salim Lamrani, “Women in Cuba: The Emancipatory Revolution,” The International Journal of Cuban Studies 8, no. 1 (2016): 110. 25 Ibid. 110. 26 Guitan, Aleia, “Cuban Revolutionary Women,” Temas de Nuestra America, no. 50 (2011): 157- 185. 27 Ibid. 160. 36 direction.”28 These women frequently contributed to the states national affairs, such as the Independence Wars and later in woman’s suffrage movements of the 1920s, in hopes that their fervent participation would earn them equality.29 During the Cuban Revolution, Castro was able to successfully gain the support of women through the push for their mass mobilization in different sectors of society and advocacy for their liberation.30 Women became active members of the revolutionary movement in an attempt to participate in the reformation of Cuban society and to improve their social, political, and economic situation. Women played an important role in all aspects of the revolution through their participation in the armed rebel forces, by becoming politically involved, and joining movements for social change. Many notable female figures arose from the revolution, such as the politically and socially conscious revolutionary Celia Sanchez Manduley. After Castro’s arrest in 1953, Manduley began to organize her own guerilla force in the Sierra Maestra mountains.31 She was able to make connections with the 26th of July Movement in Havana, and participated in the mobilization of the Cuban people during Castro’s time in prison.32 When the fighting first began, most women made silent contributions to the wartime efforts by “working underground” and “collect[ing] supplies
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