Fidel Castro And The Cuban Revolution

This drifted from the Marxist idea of how a revolution would occur which was a social revolution in which the working class would overthrow the bourgeoisie in a heavily industrialized country. On July 26th 1953, Fidel Castro led an attack on the Moncada Barracks. This one event is thought to be the start of the Cuban Revolution and also the event that became the name for Castro’s movement (Movimiento 26 Julio). The attack of the Moncada Barracks also led to the arrest of Fidel Castro. On October 16th 1953, Castro gave a four-hour speech where he served as his own defense against the charges he was being he accused of. He later reconstructed his speech for publication, which became known as History Will Absolve Me. On April 17th, 1961 the Bay of Pigs invasion took place. After Bay of Pigs there was a clear shift in the dynamics in the U.S.- Cuban relationship. The dynamics of this relationship had begun to change from 1953 to 1961 but Bay of Pigs was the event that had far-reaching implications for both Cuba and the United States.
One common misconception that is seen is the belief that Castro has always been Communism. There is a shift in his ideology that runs parallel with the changes in U.S.-Cuban relations. In History Will Absolve Me we can see that Castro does not say nor write about Marx or Lenin in his speech. He does show Socialistic leanings that are seen in his original goals for Cuba. One of the things Castro does is explain what he thinks to be Cuba’s current position. He writes about the problems within the current government and society and how his movement would work to address those problems. One theme that weaves in and out of History will Absolve Me is struggle. He goes into detail to describe those people wit...

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...improvements in the Cuban education system. In 1959, only 50% of the children in Cuba were enrolled in school and the Cuban Census of 1953 identified 23.6% illiterate . When the campaign ended in 1961, the level of illiteracy was reduced to 3.9%
The failed invasion of Bay of Pigs had extensive repercussions. It advanced Castro’s political stature in Cuba and also allowed him to establish a more prominent relationship with the Soviet Union. Even though U.S. - Cuban relations were strained since the Spanish-American there was a small possibility that Castro would have been opened to working with the United States considering that Castro did not declare his allegiance to Marxist-Leninism till 1961. The Bay of Pigs invasion served as a catalyst for more bold Cuban-Soviet relations. The more bold Cuban-Soviet relations were seen in the Cuban Missile crisis in 1963.