Three Cuban Revolutionary Leaders:Fulgencia Batista, Jose Marti, Fidel

Castro and the RevolutionA Senior CapstoneBy Mary C. Hodo

Totalitarian Regimes

• Attempt to create and establish a utopian society

• Thought by some to be an extreme form of authoritarianism

• “Radical” ideas about new ways of politics

• Most frequent example- Communist regimes

Totalitarian Regimes

• Totalitarian regimes are more brutal than authoritarians- more people die

• Create a “mass terror”- genocides of entire people, anyone they consider to be a threat

• Seek to gain total control- politically, socially and economically

Authoritarian Regimes

• Are much more common today then totalitarian regimes

• No utopian ideas or goals

• Governed by a single ruler or an “elite” group

Authoritarian Regimes

• Rulers tell the people that they must obey based on “moral or sacred” grounds, but

• Do not hesitate to use direct brutal force when faced with any kind of rebellion of opposition, however

• Common in Latin America- ruling committees- President (general), other generals.

Background and Lead-in Pt 1

• Carlos Prio President before Fulgencia Batista

• Batista- President from 1940-1944

• Cuba’s Constitution –no consecutive terms

• Batista took over from Prio in 1952- “Chief of State”, not President

• Batista- Prio was planning revolt- he was allowed to leave the country by Batista

Background and Lead in Pt 2

• Batista- (1933-1940) could make or break a President, controlled Cuba, seemed to care for people

• 1952- formed own party, knew he couldn’t win, so seized the government

• Cancelled the Presidential elections and suspended Congress

• Banned strikes and protests

Batista- 1933-1944

• 1933-1940- and 1940-1944- seemed to care more for the people, advocated for things like education and social welfare and reform

• Military man (General) of strong character, good political mind

• During these years, people were free to voice their opinions

Batista- 1933-1944

• Good reputation with U.S.- Batista compliant with Good Neighbor policy

• Accepted monetary aid from the U.S.

• Were at least 166 American businesses

Batista- 1952-1959

• 166 American businesses by the end, including hotels and casinos- strong U.S. ties

• New Batista gov’t- much harsher this time

• Now, when anything negative was said or a protest held, harsher consequences than ever

Batista- 1952-1959

• Now,- instead of arresting and jailing- sent them to into exile

• “26th of July Movement”- Eastern Cuba• Result- Fidel and Raul Castro exiled to

Central America for a few years• Military also killed people who opposed

the regime- “freethinkers”• Conclusion: authoritarian (leaning towards

totalitarian)

Jose Marti

• Freethinker, considered to be the founder of Cuban Revolutionary thought

• Born in Havana on Jan. 28, 1853• Was a legislator, poet, above all, a

freethinker- • Poetry still significant today- Cuba’s first

“truly” great poet and writer• Possibly most respected political mind in

Cuba

Jose Marti

• Much of Marti’s life was spent fighting for Cuban independence from Spain

• No Cuban heritage, still, he wanted Cubans to unite, despite differences

• He also fought for better conditions for workers- believed in the “poor man”

• “Guantanamera” lyrics-

Jose Marti

• Marti- strong policy on justice- co revolutionaries fair and honest

• Theories on society and justice- interdependent

• Told Cubans- not to be “complacent”, always want better

• For Marti- freedom was the “essence of life” an “inescapable basis for all useful works”

Jose Marti

• Interpretation of freedom- 2 opinions

• Had many ideas for post- independence, reshaping Cuba

• Pride (national) and education were on his “plan” list

• Believed that Cubans would all want it, once they saw it was possible

Jose Marti

• Marti would not live to see Cuban independence- was killed in battle on May 19, 1895

• Was said by Fidel Castro to be an “auteur intellectual” of the Revolution and its “political goals”

• Ideas are still studied and used in studying social democracies

Fidel Castro 1959-

• Prime Minister from 1959-1976

• President from 1976-

• Major leader of Revolution

• At first- seemed like he was going to help Cuba become a leader in Latin America

• Belief in Communist doctrine- Cuba would become increasingly subject to “economic hardship and isolation”

Fidel Castro 1959-

• Led “26th of July” revolt, 1953

• 1956-1958 led revolt- “army” of rebels called the “26th of July Movement”

• Major part of Revolution ended on Jan. 1, 1959, when Batista left Cuba

• At first, the Cuban people thought they had won, that they were going to get change

Fidel Castro 1959-

• Castro talked in 1963 about Cuba’s problems- blamed people, not his own policies

• Believed in personalized interference in order to move the institutional system ahead

• Castro grew more and more radical- focused more on developing Communism

Fidel Castro 1959-

• Went from “moderate left” to more extreme radical as he gained power as PM

• Put political opponents in prison

• 1960s- “embraced” Communism, began accepting aid from Soviets

• Became hostile to U.S., who had helped Batista

• 1960- U.S. embargo on Cuba

• Embargo on Cuba exports- medical supplies, soybeans, rice, and corn products

• Castro- “Yankee imperialism”- retaliated, seized the 166 U.S. businesses

• 1961- Bay of Pigs- Invasion of Cuba by U.S. and Cuban exiles- unsuccessful

• 1962-63- Cuban Missile Crisis

Fidel Castro 1959-

• 1991- Soviet Union collapsed, Castro isolated

• Mid 1990s- thousands fleeing from regime

• Jan 1998- Castro lets Pope visit- result, some political prisoners released

Fidel Castro 1959-

• 1998- 7 Cuban Americans- indicted for conspiracy and attempt to assassinate Castro

• 1999- 4 Cubans arrested for opposing a Communist government- 3 ½-5 years

• 1999- Elian Gonzalez- found in boat off coast of FL- mother and stepfather dies seeking refuge in U.S. with relatives

Fidel Castro 1959-

• November 2004- Cuban dancers defected to U.S., gov’t told them it was illegal to come here and perform

• Were granted asylum

Conclusion

• Conclusion: Castro - authoritarian ruler, arrests political opponents, doesn't kill them

• What now for Cuba? Should U.S. lift embargo, and allow direct travel there? Should they wait until Castro is out of office?