Stephen McKenney - Cuba, the United States, and Altered Destiny
Cuban history is deeply intertwined with outside influence. Colonization and foreign intervention have seemingly caused nothing but distress to the Cuban people. Of all the countries that have damaged the development of Cuba, none have been quite as devastating as the United States. This will be elucidated through the following history.
Christopher Colombus arrived in Cuba in 1492. Through a combination of willful genocide and extermination via disease, the indigenous population was wiped out. Cuba was rebuilt as a colony populated by Spaniards. Although the island was neglected for centuries, the sugar business exploded in the 19th century, leading to an influx of African slaves. The profitability of Creole and Spanish plantations made Cuba the “crown jewel” of the Spanish empire.
As time progressed, Cuban nationalism grew. It culminated in the “10 Years War,” which began in 1868. Although it was unsuccessful, the Cuban desire for independence survived. A second revolution began in 1895, during which revolutionary leader and poet Jose Marti was killed. The Cuban revolutionaries severely weakened the Spanish during this conflict. Unfortunately, in 1898, an explosion of unknown origin aboard the U.S.S. Maine, a United States’ Navy vessel, drew America into the Spanish-American War. In its weakened state, Spain quickly fell to the American forces. This led to the military occupation of Cuba by the USA, once again crushing the Cubans' hope for control of their own nation. This is the first example of the negative impact of the United States’ on the development of Cuba.
The United States of America eventually gave Cuba “independence” in 1902, but not until the Cuban government had agreed to the Platt Amendment, which stipulated that America had the right to establish a military base at Guantanamo Bay and could intervene in Cuban politics whenever it desired. The latter power would be utilized three times: in 1906, 1917, and 1921. Each time, the pretense of quelling political unrest was used for the United States to ensure its economic holdings on the island. The United States also incentivized the creation of a single-product economy by paying above market rates for Cuban sugar. This lack of diversification would cripple the Cuban economy in the coming decades. Political figure-heads in pre-revolution Cuba and the military dictator Fulgencio Batista were backed by the United States.
Rebels, fed up with the farce of Cuba's independence under United States influence, overthrew Batista in 1959. These revolutionaries, led by Fidel Castro and Che Guevara, established a socialist government and nationalized the United States’ holdings. This angered the American government, who placed a brutal embargo on Cuba, ending their lucrative sugar trade and devestating the Cuban economy. The Kennedy administration then attempted to overthrow Castro using the Bay of Pigs Invasion in 1961, but ultimately failed. Fearing for the safety of the newly independent Cuba, Castro was forced to ally with the Soviets and declare Cuba a communist nation. This alliance would also ultimately hurt the Cubans, as Cuba would also become dependent on Russian oil. While this was temporarily beneficial, it would lead to economic freefall after the collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 90s.
While the embargo has been loosened over the years, and President Barack Obama made efforts to reduce tensions between Cuba and the USA while he was in office, the oppression of Cuba by the United States is still very much felt today. Throughout the 20th century, Cuba's progress toward becoming a stable, economically-independent state has been thwarted again and again by United States' intervention. The USA's military occupations, support for Batista, creation of Cuba's single-product economy, attempted overthrow of populist leader Fidel Castro, and crushing economic sanctions have all significantly inhibited Cuba's development. This leads me to consider a couple of questions:
1. Had the United States not gotten involved in the Spanish American war, the history of Cuba would be vastly different. Do you think the country would be better off? Batista may not have taken power, meaning the Cuban Revolution may not have taken place. What might it look like economically?
Christopher Colombus arrived in Cuba in 1492. Through a combination of willful genocide and extermination via disease, the indigenous population was wiped out. Cuba was rebuilt as a colony populated by Spaniards. Although the island was neglected for centuries, the sugar business exploded in the 19th century, leading to an influx of African slaves. The profitability of Creole and Spanish plantations made Cuba the “crown jewel” of the Spanish empire.
As time progressed, Cuban nationalism grew. It culminated in the “10 Years War,” which began in 1868. Although it was unsuccessful, the Cuban desire for independence survived. A second revolution began in 1895, during which revolutionary leader and poet Jose Marti was killed. The Cuban revolutionaries severely weakened the Spanish during this conflict. Unfortunately, in 1898, an explosion of unknown origin aboard the U.S.S. Maine, a United States’ Navy vessel, drew America into the Spanish-American War. In its weakened state, Spain quickly fell to the American forces. This led to the military occupation of Cuba by the USA, once again crushing the Cubans' hope for control of their own nation. This is the first example of the negative impact of the United States’ on the development of Cuba.
The United States of America eventually gave Cuba “independence” in 1902, but not until the Cuban government had agreed to the Platt Amendment, which stipulated that America had the right to establish a military base at Guantanamo Bay and could intervene in Cuban politics whenever it desired. The latter power would be utilized three times: in 1906, 1917, and 1921. Each time, the pretense of quelling political unrest was used for the United States to ensure its economic holdings on the island. The United States also incentivized the creation of a single-product economy by paying above market rates for Cuban sugar. This lack of diversification would cripple the Cuban economy in the coming decades. Political figure-heads in pre-revolution Cuba and the military dictator Fulgencio Batista were backed by the United States.
Rebels, fed up with the farce of Cuba's independence under United States influence, overthrew Batista in 1959. These revolutionaries, led by Fidel Castro and Che Guevara, established a socialist government and nationalized the United States’ holdings. This angered the American government, who placed a brutal embargo on Cuba, ending their lucrative sugar trade and devestating the Cuban economy. The Kennedy administration then attempted to overthrow Castro using the Bay of Pigs Invasion in 1961, but ultimately failed. Fearing for the safety of the newly independent Cuba, Castro was forced to ally with the Soviets and declare Cuba a communist nation. This alliance would also ultimately hurt the Cubans, as Cuba would also become dependent on Russian oil. While this was temporarily beneficial, it would lead to economic freefall after the collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 90s.
While the embargo has been loosened over the years, and President Barack Obama made efforts to reduce tensions between Cuba and the USA while he was in office, the oppression of Cuba by the United States is still very much felt today. Throughout the 20th century, Cuba's progress toward becoming a stable, economically-independent state has been thwarted again and again by United States' intervention. The USA's military occupations, support for Batista, creation of Cuba's single-product economy, attempted overthrow of populist leader Fidel Castro, and crushing economic sanctions have all significantly inhibited Cuba's development. This leads me to consider a couple of questions:
1. Had the United States not gotten involved in the Spanish American war, the history of Cuba would be vastly different. Do you think the country would be better off? Batista may not have taken power, meaning the Cuban Revolution may not have taken place. What might it look like economically?
2. Do you think the United States’ intervention in Cuba was justified? Have measures like the embargo been successful or do they simply punish the Cuban people? If not, why do you think the United States keeps these punative measures in place?
Stephen,
ReplyDeleteI think it's likely that Cuba would have been better off without US influence. It's likely possible that being controlled by one power, and then at some time, another even more powerful nation impeded the Cuban people's ability to properly fight for and gain independence. This is the issue with colonialism, aside from the subjugation of people of course.
Economically, I think it's possible that Cuba could have widely diversified crops. As a Caribbean nation, weather is certainly appropriate for citrus, flowers, plants, coconuts, fruit, and likely a whole host of other crops that require temperate conditions. Of course, I don't know what their soil, space and other factors are, but the opportunity could still be there. It's unfortunate that all of Cuba's eggs ended up in one basket, so to speak, as its potential is likely much larger than what it has been used for.
I think to some degree the US intervention in Cuba was justified, but only for a certain period of time. I don't deny the US' right to protect itself and investigate, when necessary, like during the Cuban Missile Crisis. However, I think that a great deal of US/Cuba relations was politically motivated. Cuban reconnaissance with the USSR automatically put them in a category that was/is seen as a threat to the US. Coupled with the Cold War, there was always potential for something large and destructive to happen, and Cuba's location would have been very convenient if conflict ever did arise. That being said, I do think it went on excessively. After the Cold War, of course we see anti-American rhetoric, but is that a justified reason to continue an embargo that is essentially causing millions of people to suffer? It doesn't seem justified to me. It seems that when it came to Cuba, along with many other nations, America tends to see things in one way: "you're either with me or against me". This is unfortunate, and I think something that the US has/does struggle with on an international scale.
Chris
I enjoyed your well written and well though-out response. It offered quite a bit of though-provoking information that is definitely important to consider when looking at your question about US intervention!
ReplyDeleteIn our educational paradigm, we learn that the US interference was beneficial to Cuba in many economic and democratic respects. As it was the cold war, dogma was the currency of the times, and I think that it has prevailed even into today. When we learn about Britain, or the Soviet Union for that matter, we see that "liberation" was needed for these countries in the hopes to take them and educate them. So to our point of view, the US intervention was indeed justified because it helped our economy and the American companies that decided to take stock in the crops that flourished in the country. And while we can see that Cuba would most likely benefit without US intervention, the US continued to place embargoes and such to send a message and try to trick the populace into believing that there was once (and still is) a need to keep communist powers in check.
Stephen, I love your question about what Cuba would look like today if the Spanish-American war had never happened. If we take a step back and look at Cuba's history on a grand scale, one could argue that the Spanish-American war created a domino effect that led to Cuba's eventual communist revolution. The victory of U.S. forces over the Spanish and Cuba's "liberation" from Spain allowed the U.S. a lot of leverage in foreign policy with Cuba. As you mentioned, the establishment of the military base at Guantanamo Bay and the Platt amendment were the main ways that the United States secured power in Cuba. As a consequence, Cubans began to grow tired of the constant poverty and political intervention at the hands of the U.S., eventually leading to the Cuban Revolution.
ReplyDeleteIf this had never happened, much like the rest of Latin America, I think Cuba would have eventually gained independence from Spain, but they would have had a lot more freedom to set up their own government without U.S. interference. I think Cuba today would likely be a democratic, capitalist nation, much like Mexico. Without a doubt they would have better relations with the United States and their culturally similar neighbors. I also think there would be far less poverty in Cuba and it could be a fairly affluent country in comparison to some other countries in Latin America.