Fidel Castro, the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, is known for overturning all established records in his field. In recent history, Castro, who was the talk of the world, established the first communist state in the Western Hemisphere and did so right under the nose of America, the greatest enemy of communism.
Fidel Castro (1926-2016) was born into a poor family as the son of a sugarcane-producing father. As a young man, Castro studied law with the aim of entering politics. However, his plans were thwarted when General Batista staged a coup in 1952. The experience Castro gained from this coup turned this region into a place where only weapons spoke.
He shelved his belief in democracy and turned to armed revolution. Alongside his brother Raul, who currently governs in his name, Castro rebelled against the Batista regime. However, they were soon captured and sentenced to prison.
After being released through an amnesty, he escaped to Mexico, where he would meet the equally famous Argentine revolutionary, Ernesto Che Guevara. Fidel Castro and Che joined forces, and in 1956, they embarked on what would be known as the July Movement, landing in Cuba with a handful of revolutionaries.
They engaged in intense armed struggle against Batista, and two years later, the defeated Batista fled, leaving the country to Castro. While initially Castro's rule did not explicitly declare socialism, after the Bay of Pigs operation in 1961, Castro proclaimed Cuba as a communist state.
With the change in regime, thousands of Cubans who couldn't reconcile with the new order fled to America. Once a destination for wealthy Americans and a haven for exotic vacations, Cuba had now emerged as a satellite state of the Soviet Union, a communist nation.
The United States, which fought communism worldwide, was extremely angered by the establishment of a communist state in its own backyard, leading to the ongoing economic embargo on Cuba. When the CIA conducted a bafflingly unsuccessful operation known as the "Bay of Pigs," matters spiraled out of control. Fidel Castro thwarted the Bay of Pigs operation and promptly informed the Soviets, vowing revenge.
The placement of nuclear warheads by the USSR in 1962 led to the Cuban Missile Crisis, putting the world on the brink of nuclear war. With skillful diplomacy by President Kennedy and Soviet leader Khrushchev, the crisis was eventually resolved. However, what America understood was that Castro was tougher than they had thought...
Throughout the years, Castro never lost his popularity in Cuba. Many Cubans seemed content with the free education and healthcare services. Moreover, Castro's literacy campaign raised the country's literacy rate to over 90%.
In foreign countries, especially between 1970 and 1985, he assisted socialist revolutionary movements and dispatched troops. By 1980, there were over 40,000 Cuban soldiers abroad.
Until the fall of the Soviet Union, Cuba received significant assistance. After the collapse of the USSR, aid to Cuba was cut off, and a crisis ensued. Foreign investment was allowed in the tourism sector, helping Cuba to limp along. Although the country is still governed by a communist regime, the fame of Fidel Castro and his life experiences are etched into history.
Fidel Castro, who holds the record for the longest speech at the United Nations with 4 hours and 29 minutes, survived numerous assassination attempts, most of which were believed to be orchestrated by the CIA. According to the Cuban Security Minister, there were 634 attempts to kill Castro. Attempts included sending poisoned cigars or a poisoned diving suit, and at one point, even an ex-lover was used, but when she couldn't go through with it, she confessed, saving Castro's life.
Additionally, in an attempt to tarnish his image, chemicals were used in a failed attempt to make his beard fall out. For this reason, he would quip, "If surviving assassination attempts were an Olympic sport, I would win the gold medal."
One of Castro's daughters, Arena Fernandes, fled to the United States and now criticizes her father's policies on her radio station in Miami.
While he may have had a negative impact on a certain segment of the world, healthcare and education services were extended and made free to the masses under Castro. Even today, Cuba ranks second in the world for the number of doctors per 100 people.
Due to his prolonged physical rule over Cuba and his decision to pass the torch to his brother, he is often associated with dictatorship. Some view him as a rigid dictator, while others see him as a revolutionary. It's known that figures like Maradona, as well as Hollywood directors like Steven Spielberg and Oliver Stone, were staunch fans of Castro.
In 1985, at the age of 59, he gave up the cigars and cigarettes he was synonymous with, acknowledging their harm to health. In 2006, due to health problems, he handed over power to his brother Raul and announced that he was stepping down from the Presidency of the Cuban Council of State (the highest governing body in Cuba) on February 19, 2008.
Fidel Castro passed away on November 25, 2016, in Havana, due to multiple organ failure.
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