Cuba is a small island nation
encompassing only 11 million people. While Fidel Castro led Cuba, he helped to create and lead a generation of Latin Americans who perished in bloody guerrilla ventures and inflamed anti-communist military dictatorships. He also sent armies to Africa to fight apartheid and prop up corrupt regimes, and supported leftist revolutionaries throughout Central America.
Cuban revolution
Although the goals of Fidel Castro's Cuban revolution were radically different than they were fifty years ago, their goals remain as noble today. While the government touts free health care and education, and its literacy rate is one of the highest in the world, its restrictions on travel and the internet are causing some to question the country's intentions. The government blames the U.S. trade embargo for the changes, but critics say the government was not properly managed during this period.
Exile to Mexico City
It is now 23 years since Fidel Castro returned to Mexico City after two years of exile as a guerrilla leader. In Mexico, Fidel published his manifesto, trained his troops, and plotted to invade Cuba. In Mexico, Fidel was welcomed with open arms by Mexican President Jose Lopez Portillo and Pope John Paul II, who knelt to kiss the ground.
Cuba's relationship with the Soviet Union
The Soviet Union's economic assistance to Cuba allowed the country to meet its ambitious development goals, while also compromising its independence and damaging the possibility of a peaceful transition to a communist mode of production. The Cuban government tried to maximize the value of its most valuable asset, the American dollar, by pursuing an economic formula that closely mirrored that of Jose Marti. The result was an economy that consistently tested the resolve of Socialist states to support the Cuban revolution.
Castro's relationship with the United States
Fidel Castro, the leader of the Cuban revolution, died on Nov. 25. The revolutionary leader was both despised and beloved by the world. Historian and Latin American studies expert Avi Chomsky spoke to The Daily Orange to discuss the history of Castro and his relationship with the United States. Here are some key points about Castro's relationship with the United States. To begin, let's look at the Cuban Revolution from the perspective of the United States.
