CUBA:
The Great Journey in Economic Development
on the United State’s Doorstep
Sarah
Elizabeth Belton and Kimberly Marie Roberts
June 6,
2003
EDGE
Introduction
A discussion of Cuba and the
occurrences within the country over the last century is often surrounded by
probing analysis as to the extent to which the Revolution of 1959 actually
served as a change from past regimes.
It is ignorant to evaluate the revolution in a vacuum, because past
events that created the climate where such a change could take place. Yet it is also immature to state that 1959
was purely a product of history and previous revolutions. The story of the Cuban revolution and events
since does not begin with the revolution itself. Rather, it starts from the political, economic, and social
situations which evolved over centuries.
The revolution of 1959 was not the first revolution to take place in
Cuba. Political struggles within the
state had been occurring for years trying to create a stable system that would
provide the stage for Cuba to assume its possible level of economic development
and growth. Additionally, there was a
desire to release the population from dictator control.
The rise of the leader Fidel Castro continues to mark
a drastic divergence from previous leadership and policy. For this reason the political changes of
1959 and afterwards must be viewed as a revolution, a complete change of the
political system and policy of Cuba.
Moreover, after seizing control of Cuba, Fidel Castro implemented a very
unique form of Communism often referred to as “Castroism.” Under Castro’s control – and with
substantial help from the Soviet Union – Cuba flourished in a number of areas
including health care and equality.
This Communism and relationship with the U.S.S.R., however, led Cuba to
become very estranged from the United States.
Even today, despite the fall of the Communist Bloc in Europe and
economic problems in Cuba, the United States will not lift the trade embargo
off of its tiny island neighbor.
Geography
Cuba is located approximately 90
miles from the coast of the United States. (Wriston 5) The largest island in the Caribbean, or
Greater Antilles Islands, it has an area of 69,000 square miles (Rabkin 9) Cuba is known for its tropical climate,
mineral resources, and land suitable to agriculture.
Important about Cuban geography is
it’s location relative to North America.
It serves as a possible stop for goods headed towards the United States,
Mexico, and other areas of Latin America before entering the vast waters of the
Atlantic Ocean. Simply speaking, Cuba
was not a place that was recognized for its potential military and economic
position in the developing world as countries became increasingly linked.
Political History
Cuba was first discovered by the western world during
the Age of Discovery by Christopher Columbus in October of 1492. (Rabkin
9) The European attitude perpetuated
during this time period would have lasting implications on Cuba. Upon arrival Columbus, who never discovered
that Cuba was, in fact, an island encountered a native population of Indocubans
who practiced a subsistence lifestyle involving fishing, agriculture, and
hunting. (Bloch)
The Sixteenth Century was a time in which the
conquistadors, or conquerors, were moving forth from the Iberian
Peninsula. During the period when the
Moors and the Jews were in control of Spain the domestic economy had flourished
and there was large internal structural development reflected in the establishment
of a parliament. When the Habsburgs
gained control of Spain, the old ruling groups were marred by the Inquisition
and parliament was dissolved. Those
conquistadors who left were military leaders in search of new lands for their
king who desired treasures. They were
joined by priests whose task was to convert the indigenous populations to
Christianity. (Goldenberg 17)
Diego Velazquez was the first
conquistador to arrive in Cuba. (Bloch) Upon arrival, Velazquez, accompanied by
religious leaders found the Indian population, first encountered by Columbus,
whose culture was unfamiliar and therefore automatically labeled
uncivilized. Treasure was in fact found
and served as partial justification of exploitation of the native population
for their resources. A new society
evolved in Cuba, and also in other conquered states. The conquistadors became the ruling class and developed a society
of “overlords based on the exploitation of unfree labour.” (Goldenberg 17)
The indigenous population of Cuba
was greatly affected by the Spanish presence.
Economically, under Hernando Cortes it became a trading post, serving as
the last stop for ships traveling from Peru and Mexico to Europe. (Chaffee
2) Politically the native Cuban
population was subjugated to exist without a voice among the foreign ruling class. Socially, the native Arawak Indians were
affected by the diseases brought by the Europeans. (Chaffee 2)
The rise of Napoleon in Europe
meant, for many Latin American countries, their time as members of the Spanish
empire had ended. However, this was not
the case for Cuba. The country would
have to undergo three wars before it would gain freedom from Spain. The Ten Years war lasted from 1868 to 1878,
and was led with Carlos Manuel de Cespedes. (Goldenberg 99) By releasing his slaves, Cespedes, one of
the Cuban landowners, began the movement of many different groups to rise up
and fight for liberation. While this
war did not end Spanish occupation or rule, it was a major factor in the end to
slavery which took place in 1880.(Chaffee 2)
Another war took place during this year, again ultimately without
success.
It
would be fifteen years before another insurrection would take place. This time led by General Antonia Maceo and
Jose Marti, a writer and philosopher. (Goldenberg 100) Marti would die in the final battle for
freedom. The stage was set for Cuban
independence in 1898 as Spanish rule was weakening and portions of Cuba were
already under local governmental control.
However, the explosion of the United
States battleship Maine off the coast of Havana led to American intervention in
the war, eventual defeat of the Spaniards, and American occupation.(Goldenberg
100) Under Spanish rule, Cubans had
been subjugated in their societal roles and had never developed their own
government. Intervention by the
Americans did not remedy this situation but served to continue the
exploitation. The American military
governor, General Leonard E. Wood, did not involve the Cubans in the internal
developments that took place. (Wriston 11)
Thus, while public health was improved, roads built, and schools
developed, Cubans were not in control.
It is undeniable that the population benefited from these developments,
but the extent to which they established a future for native independent rule
is questionable.
By 1900, despite the American push
for annexation of Cuba, movements were being made towards the permanent
establishment of a republic. A
constitutional convention and elections were held. (Wriston 12) However the United States was reluctant to
simply break all ties with Cuba and allow the country to develop
autonomously. The Platt Amendment
developed by the United States was formally adopted as a treaty between Cuba
and the United States in 1903 and it “stipulated the conditions for U.S.
intervention in Cuban affairs and permitted the United States to lease lands
for the establishment of a naval base in Cuba.”(bartleby.com) However the practical effect of the
amendment was to make Cuba into a virtual United States protectorate and
justify future United States intervention on the island. To the Cuban population the Platt amendment
was viewed as the United States attempting to assume a paternalistic position
over a nation that had already been under foreign control for 400 years and to
whom independence was the prized goal.
The Platt amendment provided
justification for intervention into Cuba three times in the early twentieth
century. In 1906, 1912, and 1917 Cuban
factions invited the United States to intervene and “restore order on the
island.” (Rabkin 14) However, American
intervention did not stop later disputes.
In 1933 a revolution took place against then-current leader
Machado. Led by Fulgencio Batista,
officers in the Cuban military, along with students, united to form a
revolutionary provisional government. (Rabkin 15) The government proved unsuccessful and was overthrown. However, Batista remained part of Cuban
politics.
Prior to 1940 Batista existed
politically behind the scenes as a powerful governmental figure. However, in that year he was elected to the
presidency and “took an active interest in expanding health and sanitation
services, schools, and public works” (Rabkin 16) Batista’s presidency ended four years later and he was succeeded
by Grau San Martin, another who had been a part of the failed revolution in
1933, and later by Carlos Prio Socarras.
In 1952, Batista was again part of a
coup. This time he overthrew Prio. The change in leadership was joined by a
breakdown of Cuban democratic institutions.
The Economic Situation
Despite the numerous attempts within
Cuba to create change in the political system of the nation “Cuban society
between 1934 and 1959 was characterized by violence, instability, and movements
symptomatic of a continuance of revolutionary conditions.” (Wriston 45) Much of this can be explained
economically.
There are several misconceptions
about the state of the Cuban economy prior to the 1959 revolution; “as early as
1949…in relation to its population Cuba was more highly capitalized than any
other Latin American country.” (Goldenberg 121) While the sugar industry was the major industry of the nation,
over half of workers employed in Cuba were not employed in agriculture.
Industry in terms of automobile,
cement, and textile production increased rapidly from the late 1940s. While in other nations industrializing
during this time there was an apparent widening gap between the rich and the
poor, in Cuba “the lower classes shared, though to an insufficient extent, in
the gradual improvement in living standards.” (Goldenberg 122-123)
Cuba was looking to improve its
economy in the Twentieth century. It
was underdeveloped and sought to live up to its economic potential and provide
benefits of economic growth to the masses.
At a time when, nations around the globe were trying new measures to
recover from World War II, Cuba too was attempting to move forward. The revolution of 1959 would be the medium
selected for such improvements.
Fidel Castro
Born in August 1926, Fidel was the fourth son of
Angel Castro and Lina Ruz, his cook whom he married after the death of his
wife. (Goldenberg 148) Beginning at a
very young age Fidel worked on his family’s sugar plantation. At age 6, after convincing his parents,
Fidel attended Catholic boarding school and later the Jesuit school, Belen
College, before attending Havana University to study law. (CNN.com)
It was while at the University, that Fidel first began to
cultivate his interests in politics.
After obtaining his law degree Fidel went into private practice focusing
on the poor. He wanted to run for a
seat in parliament, but the overthrow of the Prio government by Batista
resulted in a cancelled election. Fidel
filed a petition in court charging Batista of denying Cuba’s constitution. Castro’s petition was denied.
(CNN.com)
A controversial figure, Castro has
been married and divorced. He is the
father of 7 children. Once a practicing
Roman Catholic, Fidel Castro has since been excommunicated. (CNN.com)
The First Try
For Castro what would become the Cuban revolution of
1959 actually began in 1953. It was
during this time that “Fidel Castro gathered a number of students around him
and sought to begin a national uprising by capturing the army barracks at
Moncada” (Chaffee 6) On July 26, 1953
they attacked the garrison. Joined by
165 revolutionaries, Castro was defeated by Batista’s forces. Castro and his surviving supporters were
tried and imprisoned. “The daring act
of Castro and his followers captured the people's imagination and the failed
July 26 Moncada assault became the rallying cry against Batista and the
beginning of a wider political movement that would come to be known as the
Movimiento 26 de Julio.” (Bloch)
The wide support for Castro’s
decisive move against the current political regime forced the release of the
convicted, who left for Mexico to begin their exile in May of 1955. There Castro reorganized and with a new
group of supporters waged continuous guerrilla warfare against the Batista
government. (CNN.com) In Cuba, from
1956 until the revolution of 1959, people were turning against the Batista
regime claiming the ruler was corrupt, a terrorist, and clinging to dreams of a
revived Cuba. (Plank 59)
The Revolution
“Cuba is different in that its 1959
revolution resulted in the greatest political, social, and economic
restructuring of any society in Latin America.” (Chaffee 1) The revolution of 1959 was the culmination
of many forces that came together in search of a political system that would
finally voice and support the wishes of a people who had been oppressed since
the Spaniards had first colonized the state.
Batista was not immune from outside forces that
sought to crumble his repressive hold on the Cuban people. His support dwindled, members of his
military deflected, and finally the United States removed its support for the
government. In March 1958, the United
States placed an arms embargo on Cuba. (Chaffee 7) The United States, in order to stop opposition forces, like those
led by Fidel Castro from coming into power and transforming America’s role in
Cuba, wanted to install a new government formed by Batista’s moderate
opponents. (Wriston 27) Batista was
unwilling to give up control of Cuba.
He was informed by United States Ambassador Earl Smith that he had to
leave the country. Batista exited Cuba
on January 1, 1959, the same day that Fidel Castro a distinct role in the new
government of the nation. Yet, it would
not be until February 16, 1959 that Castro would assume the position of Prime
Minister, thus adding political legitimacy to his internal position in the
Cuban system. (Suarez 43)
There are several notable factors that make the Cuban
revolution distinct. Batista was
overthrown externally, before any coup had been permitted to evolve from
internal governmental institutions.
Batista also never entered into the phase where he made concessions and
compromised with the masses so upset by his rule. The Cuban transition to a socialist state took place without a
Civil War. (Goldenberg 293)
For reasons similar to those stated above many are
quick to dismiss occurrences in Cuba as distinct, yes, but a revolution,
no. In his analysis of the events of
early 1959 Suarez states that “if the revolution is to mean a violent, long
drawn out, and fundamental transformation of the prevailing social and economic
system brought about by the oppressed and exploited masses…then in January 1959
there was no revolutionary situation in Cuba.” (Suarez 34) Yet, we must recall that it is not only the
causes of change but also the results that influence the definition of an event
as a revolution.
January, 1959 was the time when complete change did
occur in Cuba and was accompanied by the complete overthrow of the political
system. The nation has since undergone
many internal structural changes as a result.
The fact that the occurrences of 1959 constituted a revolution in Cuba
is not dependent on it’s adherence to the traditional definition of a
revolution.
In fact the Cuban revolution broke many of the
liberal ideas about what a real revolution would entail. “Cuba was richer than other Latin American
countries, the social inequalities were less marked, and the middle class
rather bigger than in other parts of Latin America.” (Goldenberg 294) The revolution in Cuba was not a peasant
revolution, simply a movement by a group of people believing that their
proposed system could provide better benefits to the Cuban population. The message they spread was not one dwelled
upon by most. The Cuban revolution was
one where evaluation would be based not only on the event itself but the
consequences of the political change.
For this reason “representative democracy had so much appeal that whole
struggle against Batista was led under its banner. The masses hardly participated in any active manner and the
communist party did not direct the struggle.” (Goldenberg 294) However, since 1959, the measures undertaken
by the new government have been a marked change from the previous regimes of
Prio and Batista.
To say that every revolution that has taken place or
that ever will occur must fit into a specified mold is to deny to the people
the power to effect change under a variety of circumstances. Past history can not predict every event
that ever will occur. The events in
Cuba were a successful outcome of the actions of a group of people unhappy with
the political leadership, and with a desire to alter the status quo. The result was a transformation of the
political system, a revolution.
Cuba After 1959
After the revolution, the socialist Republic of Cuba
was created. The country is divided
into 14 provinces (and one municipio especial), with its capital located in the
northwest city of Havana. Operating
under the 1976 Constitution, the nation follows a legal system, which is
influenced heavily by Spanish, American and Communist law.
While Cuban communism was modeled after the
Marxist-Leninist communism, it took on its own characteristics and uniqueness.
“Cuba should not be compared to the Soviet Union, the Eastern European bloc, or
China.”[1] “From the beginning, a stubbornly utopian
and doctrinaire moralism has tinged [Castro’s] views of socialism…Castro’s
idealistic quest for the fundamental reshaping of man and society, a quest
sometimes scaled back, but never fully abandoned, accounts for the peculiar
essence of communism in Cuba”[2]
From the moment Castro ascended to power, he was
thrust into a position of power and “with the revolution’s triumph, Castro
himself was in a position to perform great historical deeds.”[3] He was viewed as the people’s hero and
therefore faced little political opposition.
“By early 1960, almost all of the moderate political figures initially
in the government had resigned or had been forced out. With the gradual elimination of these
middle-class elements, Castro gained a free hand to pursue his dearly held goal
– to carry out a thorough-going radical social revolution in Cuba.”[4]
Economically, Castro’s goal was to completely eliminate market
relationships from Cuba – to create a country with no money. He made many of the country’s services, such
as sporting events and communication services, free to the people and worked to
motivate workers through a higher consciousness for the common good. Castro’s socialism was done purely for what
he believed was better for his people and the leaders of the country operated
under the same conditions – even going out into the fields to cut sugar cane
with the masses. Cuba also initiated
rationing in 1962, which regulated caloric intake, clothing, shoes, soap and
even toothpaste. While this did assure
the population minimum provisions – unlike the rest of Latin America where
resources are very unevenly distributed – a large black market was born which
flourished on the island.
Not only did Castro work to move Cuba’s economy into
socialism, he also wanted to diversify the country and lessen its reliance on
sugar. “It was Castro’s desperate quest
to diversify the Cuban economy, to create a balanced export base and a
broadened domestic production structure.”[5] However, “on the whole, socialism proved
better at redistributing wealth than at creating it.”[6]
While Castro’s economic policies
were not immediately successful, his government did make great progress in
terms of social change. Immediately
after assuming power, Castro began to implement measures to improve living
standards in Cuba. In fact, “Cuba’s
reputation for practicing a unique form of socialism, distinct from either the
Soviet or Chinese models, derives primarily from the experience of the
1960s. Particularly in the latter half
of the decade, policy was marked by the extreme moralism and utopianism that
have been Fidel Castro’s trademark.”[7]
Under Castro’s first economic policies, many lower
class workers received employment and upward mobility for the first time. Additionally, the government worked to
improve issues of race and inequality in Cuba.
In 1960, Castro “pledged to end job discrimination in Cuba, and ordered
private beaches, hotels, and restaurants open to the public of all races.”[8] Castro implemented his desire for racial
equality through his policies of socio-economic equality rather than
preferential hiring in the form of racial quotas or affirmative action. Essentially, Cuba was “colorblind” and
Castro believed that by improving the status of the lower class, racial
stratification would also decrease.
The government also put a great emphasis on
education. After the revolution, the
enrollment in schools – from children in primarily school to adults returning
to school – almost doubled. This
expanded school system operated and taught the ideals of the revolution. “Invoking the ideas of Karl Marx and Jose
Marti(?), many schools combined study with
practical work…The system was supposed to teach valuable lessons about the
dignity of manual labor.”[9]
In addition to education, the government also put a
great emphasis on health care. Medical
services were made completely free. By
1980 Cuba had the lowest infant mortality rate in Latin America. “Its performance in health, education,
pensions and welfare generally has been outstanding, particularly when set
against the background of the conditions of the masses in neighboring Central
and South America. Primary and preventative healthcare has meant that Cuba has
an infant mortality rate half of Washington, DC's.”[10]
Castro's initiatives were quite successful. “As The
Guardian put it in 1998: ‘In terms of accessing those basic attributes of a
humane society Cuba scores very highly. In the most recent index set out in the
1997 Human Development Report, Cuba is in the top group of five developing
countries which have reduced human poverty to the point at which it affects
less than 10 per cent of the population. Cuba's performance is above Costa Rica
and way above that of Jamaica, El Salvador and Haiti.’”[11]
Regardless of whether one agrees with Castro's
policies, it is clear that the Cuban revolution accomplished tremendous social
change. "The entire symbolic
structure of the old Cuba – its ideals, norms and expectation of authority and
society – were overturned.”[12]
While
the social pushes of the post-revolution government had the most dramatic
effect on the lives of the countries people, the new leadership created an even
greater impact on the political character of the nation. “More than any previous Cuban leader, Castro
succeeded in enlisting the organized participation of Cuban citizens in support
of government objectives. Cubans showed
their commitment to the revolution by serving in the militia, enrolling in
ideological study groups, volunteering to harvest cane, etc.”[13] By showing a commitment to equality, Castro
had garnered the support of his country on an emotional level, which created
the proactive support his government needs to survive.
In
the realm of foreign affairs during the early years of the new government,
"revolutionary romanticism dominated.”[14]
Castro even criticized the Soviets for being too conservative. “[Castro’s] combination of daring and
realism brought Cuba a measure of international influence and prestige which
few countries of comparable size could boast.”[15]
In a
speech given in Havana by Fidel Castro, the leader referred to Cuba as the “ant
standing next to the elephant.”[16] He used the analogy to illustrate his
opinion of the relationship between Cuba and the US – that the US has the
ability to protect or crush the ant, while the ant is of no threat to the much
more powerful elephant. While this may
be true today, historically, this was not the case.
Cuba, unlike other small nations in
Latin America, elicits particular American attention because of its
location. Lying only 90 miles off the
coast of Florida, it also is strategically located in the passage routes from
the Mississippi River and Panama Canal.
In 1903, The Platt Amendment, which gave the US the right to intervene
in Cuban affairs, was incorporated into a treaty between the US and Cuba which
set the tone for future relations between the neighbors.
After the revolution, Cuban-American relations
soured. Cuba rebelled against the United States, which they felt had kept
Batista in power. More significantly,
during the cold war, Cuba became a significant threat to the US because of its
backing by the Soviet Union. The
Soviets were eager to gain power in the Western Hemisphere. This, in addition to their socialist ties,
made the two nations logical allies.
Thus, after the communists came to power in Cuba, “not only was a
Western Hemisphere government allied
with our declared antagonists in the cold war; a strategically and militarily
important outpost in this part of the world had been opened to extra
continental powers.”[17]
America’s policies towards Cuba were initially rooted
in our desire to keep the Soviet’s out of our backyard. As Cuba’s ties to the Soviet Union
strengthened, “it became progressively clearer [to the US] that the
displacement of the Castro regime was the only way to prevent Soviet domination
of Cuba.”[18]
The United States turned to economic warfare. By 1960, President Eisenhower had imposed
the first trade restrictions on Cuba.
Less than a year later there was a total embargo on exports to Cuba
except for food and medicine. In 1961,
diplomatic relations were broken, which was followed by the failed Bay of Pigs
invasion. By 1962, Kennedy had banned
all trade with Cuba.
This approach was unsuccessful and in fact caused
Cuba to become even more tied to Moscow.
"As the United States stepped up the effort to achieve the economic
isolation of Cuba, Castro was made dependent on the Soviet Union to the extent
of a million dollars a day.”[19] By 1962 the Soviet Union was providing Cuba
with tremendous financial support, and Cuba became very economically dependent
on the U.S.S.R. During the 1960s, Cuba
received around $200 million dollars a year in various forms from the Soviets.
Additionally, Cuba received extensive support from
the Soviets in the form of military aid that has been approximated at over 1.5
billion dollars. Most troubling to the US was that the Soviets were beginning
to create a missile system in Cuba that was capable of striking the United
States. Tension mounted as the US
became aware of the Soviet armament of Cuba and the hostility of the cold war
intensified. The Cuban Missile Crisis
of 1962 is the closest the United States has ever come to nuclear war.
Throughout the next three decades, American/Cuban
hostility deepened. The cold war was
being waged between Washington and Moscow, and Cuba was actively working to
spread communism throughout Latin America – particularly in El Salvador and Nicaragua. Cuba continued to rely on significant
financial support from the Soviets. By
the 1990's, little had changed in the stormy relationship between the US and
Cuba.
With the fall of the Communists in the U.S.S.R. in
1991, Cuba's situation was altered dramatically. Cuba became isolated in the Western Hemisphere and lost over $6
billion of annual aid from the Soviets which sent its economy into
depression. In April 1991, Castro
declared that a total of 85 per cent of Cuba's foreign trade "had crumbled
in a matter of months”[20]
and its imports had decreased by 80%.
Further crippling the small island nation were new
sanctions by the United States. The
Torricelli Bill of 1992 and the Helms-Burton Act of 1996, went as far as to
outlaw US subsidiaries outside American borders from trading with Cuba. As conditions in Cuba declined, refugee
attempts to reach the US increased. In
1994, it is estimated that 30,000 Cubans risked their lives to cross the 90
miles to Florida.
In 1996, despite the still grim conditions, Cuba
managed to grow economically. Castro
put an emphasis on foreign investments and an expansion of tourism to
Cuba. In regards to the market economy,
“Fidel Castro himself, unlike the ex-bureaucrats Gorbachev, Yeltsin, etc, has
not rushed to embrace the market. In words he still defends 'socialism' as an
alternative to capitalism, although in Cuba itself he has been compelled to
make big concessions to the market as the price for his government's continued
existence.”[21]
Even so, Castro’s communist tactics have helped Cuba
rise in the ranks of Latin American countries.
While Cuban communism has had its problems, it has been suggested that
it is this communism that has helped them work through their economic
problems. The simple fact that the
Cuban attempt at Socialism has lasted over 20 years longer than the effort made
in the nation of its birth and has helped Fidel defend and maintain a communist
economy. Cuba today is still communist,
but communism in and of itself is not a danger to the US.
Today, tiny Cuba no longer poses a military threat to
the U.S. – it is simply the ant standing next to the elephant. With their economic problems and no ties to
powerful communist nations, Cuba’s problems with the US are predominately
historical.
Accordingly, the US embargo of Cuba
is now outdated. It not necessary to
economically isolate Cuba in order to thwart a possible threat. Instead, the embargo's main effect is to
deprive the Cuban people of the benefits of trade to obtain food, consumer
goods, drugs, and other health care products.
In a speech to the United Nations Rodríguez Parrilla, Cuba's ambassador
to the United Nations, said, “The Cuban population, especially our children,
pregnant women, senior citizens and the ill, are the daily victims of the
continuation and strengthening of the blockade against Cuba.” He also noted the
total damage to the Cuban economy for 1994 was estimated at one billion
dollars.[22]
If then, the purpose of the US
embargo is to force the eradication of communism from Cuba, the method of
embargo is unrealistic and hypocritical.
The success of the embargo relies on support from other nations – a form
of collaboration that actually requires socialistic ideals. Therefore, “in the light of our reaction to
Marxism, there is irony in American reliance on Marxist economic determinism to
dislodge Castro.”[23] Also, because the United States does not
receive unconditional international support for the embargo, Cuba is still able
to sustain (and grow as it did in 1996).
The embargo, therefore, is effective in diminishing the quality of life
of the Cubans, but not successful enough to force change.
Finally, even if the embargo is able
to force capitalism to enter the Cuban economy, “the revolution effected a
substantial redistribution of wealth, social status, and opportunities. Even with the eventual disappearance of
Castro and/or communism, from Cuba, many aspects of the new social structure
and socio-economic expectations will no doubt endure.”[24]
Conclusion
Castro’s approach to Cuba after the revolution has
been radical socialism. While the new
government did have initial problems, particularly in economics and foreign
affairs, it was able to enact a great deal of change and improve many aspects
of the small island nation. Today, Cuba
leads Latin America in crucial social areas such as literacy rate and infant
mortality rate, but faces numerous unique problems found no where else in the
world. These problems, while rooted in
features of Cuba’s government, are also largely due to the treatment of the
Cuba by the United States.
Castro believes that the embargo is outdated and now
serves only to hurt a country that is powerless to endanger its superpower
neighbor to the north. He also believes
that his government provides its people with everything they need – which is
one of his greatest priorities – and that the US is hindering his effort.
The United States today is tied too greatly to its
past relationship with Cuba and is too shortsighted to see the true nature of
Cuba today. If the United States would
remove the embargo and assist Cuba the way it has assisted other countries
around the world, Cuba could be even more successful.
Works Cited
List
Bloch, Fred D. and Constantino Torres. Doing Business with Cuba. 1997. May 30, 2003
<http://edutourstocuba.com/cuba/cuba_hist.html>.
Chaffee, Wilber A. and Gary Prevost, et al. Cuba: A Different America. New Jersey: Rowman & Littlefield
Publishers, Inc., 1989.
“Fidel Castro: Cuban Leader” CNN Newsmaker Profiles. 1998. May 31, 2003.
<http://www.cnn.com/resources/newsmakers/world/namerica/castro.html>.
Goldenberg,
Boris. The Cuban Revolution and Latin
America. London: George Allen
and Unwin Ltd., 1965.
Plank, John, et al.
Cuba and the United States: Long Range Perspectives. Washington D.C.: The Brookings Institution,
1967
Rabkin, Rhoda P. Cuban Politics: The Revolutionary
Experiment. New York: Praeger
Publishers, 1991.
Suarez, Andres.
Cuba: Castroism and Communism, 1959-1966. Cambridge Massachusetts: the M.I.T. Press, 1967.
[1] Rabkin, p. 39
[2] Rabkin, p. 39
[3] Rabkin, p. 40
[4] Rabkin, p. 41
[5] Rabkin, p. 51
[6] Rabkin, p. 53
[7] Rabkin, p. 50
[8] Rabkin, p. 54
[9] Rabkin, p. 54
[10] Peter Taaffe, Mai Cuba: Socialism and Democracy. 2000. http://www.slp.at/theorie/cuba_2.html
[11] Peter Taaffe, Mai Cuba: Socialism and Democracy. 2000. http://www.slp.at/theorie/cuba_2.html.
[12] Rabkin, p. 53
[13] Rabkin, p. 55
[14] Rabkin, 51.
[15] Rabkin, p. 170
[16] Speech by Fidel Castro, December 6, 2002, attended by Kimberly Roberts
[17] Plank, p. vii
[18] Plank (Wriston), p. 32
[19] Plank (Wriston), p. 36
[20] Peter Taaffe, Mai Cuba: Socialism and Democracy. 2000. http://www.slp.at/theorie/cuba_2.html.
[21] Peter Taaffe, Mai Cuba: Socialism and Democracy. 2000. http://www.slp.at/theorie/cuba_2.html.
[22] Garza, Laura. “UN
Condemns U.S. Embargo On Cuba” 1995.
[23] Plank (Wriston), p. 40
[24] Rabkin, p. 53