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Homework Help: Social Studies: World History: Cuban Revolution
by Jennifer Wu
From 1959 to today's date and on, Fidel Castro has served as 'el lider maximo' or, the maximum leader of Cuba. All the changes that have taken place there since 1959, occurred at Fidel's will and under his direction. The person to be blamed and credited for today's state of Cuba, is he, Fidel Castro for it was he that brought communism to Cuba.
Beginning in the 1950's the face and shape of Cuba were altered forever by the Cuban revolution. Fidel Castro and his young rebels provided the driving force for change in Cuba. This is the story of that revolution, also known as Cuba's motion of independence. It is also the story of Fidel Castro, for it is impossible to separate the two.
Three weeks before the 1952 Cuban presidential elections, Fulgencio Batista Zaldivar Ð a former president Ð was running third in a 3-man-race. Dr. Roberto Agramonte of the Ortodoxos party led in all the polls, followed by Dr. Aurelio Hevia of the Autentico party. At this point, Batista decided to turn a likely political defeat into a sudden stunning victory. He simply seized control of the government by force of arms.
In the early hours of March 10, 1952, Batista and a handful of fellow officers entered Camp Columbia in Havana and took control of the Cuban army. With the army supporting him, he overthrew the presidency of Carlos Prio Soccaras in a scant 77 minutes. Only 2 men died in the 'almost' bloodless takeover, and an indifferent nation seemed neither to notice nor to care. By late that afternoon, Batista was firmly in power. Prio fled the country a few hours later. He left the control and destiny of Cuba in the grasping hands of the latest in a long line of leaders. Before Batista's takeover, Cuba's government had still functioned as a democracy. Government offices were riddled with corruption. Still, Cubans loyally held to the hope that by electing the right leadership, a democratic government might yet be preserved. Batista's sudden strike slammed the door shut on the hopes of most of them. He maintained office for 7 years by violence and repression.
It was a summer madness, or so it would seem, but beyond the madness there burned in the hearts and minds of all who took part, a flame of idealism, patriotism, selflessness, courage and loyalty toward their country. It was that summer that began the Cuban Revolution.
On the eve of July 26, 1953 they came to the beach of Siboney and to the city of Santiago. They came singly and in pairs, from all around the island and from all ranks of society. They called themselves Fidelistas Ð the revolutionary disciples of Fidel Castro Ð They traveled the land to execute Castro's plan to overthrow Batista's government by force of arms. They were prepared to die in pursuit.
Fidel Castro, however looked far beyond the event of March 10th and his hopes sprang alive. He saw not the closing of the door to democracy, but rather the opening of the door to revolution. If anyone was responsible for opening the way to Castro's capture of power, that man was Fulgencio Batista.
Over the next 7 years, he forged and led the movement that eventually overthrew Batista. In early 1959, he unseated the dictator and installed himself as Premier of Cuba.
In 1962, he moved the world to the brink of nuclear war by installing Soviet nuclear war missiles in Cuba. His role in President John F. Kennedy's assassination is still unclear even today. What is clear is the major impact Fidel has had not only on Cuba, but on the entire world.
Cuba's Fidel Castro has always been fond of saying that he was born to change history. With a vision that history grants only to a few, Fidel saw himself as Cuba's saviour. Once in power, Fidel turned Cuba away from a democracy to embrace communism, or rather castroism.
Improvements to public health care, education and agriculture seem to be his major gains, but he still maintains large military and continues to export his revolution to other 3rd world countries.
In Fidel's eyes, he saw that the former Cuban government was letting their country slip away into poverty. Fidel Castro came into government with his castroism to help the country gain balance and make sure everyone had a chance to learn, and live without poverty. Friction occurred between Castro and the United States when the new Cuban government began banishing American-owned properties for inadequate compensation. In 1960, Cuba became friendly with the USSR, and made an agreement to buy Russian oil. After Cuba had seized nearly all US owned properties in Cuba and made agreements with other communist governments, the US broke relations with the Castro government.
Cuba and the US were brought into confrontation on 2 occasions after Castro had taken power. The US made an unsuccessful attempt to destabilize the Castro government. In 1961 a force of 1300 Cuban exiles, supported by the CIA, made an unsuccessful attempt to invade Cuba at a southern coastal area called the Bay Of Pigs invasion, but the loyal Cubans still there fought it off. The US assumed that the invasion would inspire the Cuban population to rise up and overthrow Castro. It was a US miscalculation; the Cuban population supported Castro and were loyal to him. The US government tried various schemes to assassinate Fidel Castro and continues to isolate Cuba. The US and Cuban exiles have accused Castro of committing acts of 'false imprisonment, murder, torture and the violation of human rights' during his 43 years in power. Most of the Cuban exiles that are expelled from Cuba by Fidel Castro and the Cubans who leave out of free will resettle in Miami Florida as it is the closest point of US land to their homeland Cuba. There are even cases such as this one, where a 15-year-old boy died of severe dehydration while fleeing Cuba by raft. In 1996 Cuban Air Force jets shot down 2 of an organization's planes, killing 4 people. The act was a predetermined ambush of the planes.
The government's communism can be seen as destructive or constructive. Critics of Fidel see him as a man wanting all the power of Cuba to himself, while others see him as a man wanting to help his country. It depends on your point of view.
Fidel Castro remains leader today, but his days grow short to await judgment of future generations. Meanwhile the question as to the success or failure of the Cuban Revolution must remain, of necessity, unanswered. For now, however it seems fair to say that under Fidel the Cuban population has suffered, but they still remain loyal to their country. Although the eternal hope of all Cubans for a free country remains still a dream and a faded one at best. Whether history acclaims or condemns his performance, at least one thing will remain certainÉhis legacy will remain.
Homework Help: Social Studies: World History
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