Cuban Human Rights Issues Essay

Cuban history, like many other countries in Latin America and the Caribbean which have experienced colonial subjugation and imperial interference, is highlighted by tumultuous rebellions. Ever since the revolt of Carlos Manuel de Cespedes in 1868, who took up arms with his slaves to liberate Cuba from Spain’s colonial grasp, the existence of insurrectionists and adamant government opposition in Cuba has flourished. Social revolution and a strong will and practice of nationalism has indelibly characterized Cuban history. Nevertheless, the outcomes of particular movements and struggles for social justice have consistently frustrated revolutionary and radical leaders. Government regimes throughout

In 1959, Fidel Castro led a group of rebel forces to end and overthrow Fulgencio Batista’s regime in an effort to free the Cuban people from his tyrannous rule. For very many different political reasons this has been portrayed as an act of great injustice and hypocrisy in the modern world. A lot of this has of course been advocated primarily by the US due to the high level of political tension between the two nations that developed in the mid 1950s. Believing this conventional wisdom that Castro was simply an evil communist who oppressed his people and stripped them of their human rights is very dangerous because it

Also, there isevidence that access to medical care by prisone! rs is intentionally withheldfrom prisoners of conscience, and other prisoners that criticized the Cubangovernment. Amnesty International reports that suspected critics of thegovernment are being harassed with threats, eviction, loss of employment, andeven short-term incarceration. Even more disturbing is that these violationsare merely a fraction of the true number of human rights breaches that theCuban government is guilty of committing (“Amnesty International 2002Report”). But the human rights violations are not the only reason actionneeded to be taken towards Cuba.

Cuba’s government is a totalitarian-socialist regime from a communist state. Fidel Castro is Cuba’s leader by default, but many Cuban’s dislike Castro’s ruling and cannot wait till the end of Castro’s rein. Castro also has his own army, which help him keep everything in order in and around the country. Fidel’s army is also known for brutal attacks on its citizens. Cuba’s religion is 85% Roman Catholic and many take their religion seriously.

There are many domestic issues within Cuba, that is because we chose controversial countries that allowed for mass amounts of research. However issues such as human rights, brain drain, and censorship are the most prominent. First of all, human rights are constantly impeded in a repressive country like Cuba, especially the right of freedom of speech and expression. When Fidel Castro was in power, he denied people of their rights and if their opinions contrasted. This is still happening in today’s day and age where people are simply thrown in jail just for fighting for rights that should have been granted by the government. To make things worse, if the detainee later decided to stand up again to being treated wrongfully in their country, the

Although Afro-Cubans made up nearly half of the Cuban population during Cuba’s colonial period Spanish culture, trends, and biases were the dominant ideology. Thus, due to the dynamics of the Spanish colonial rule in Cuba compounded by a Spanish inherent belief of cultural superiority, Afro-Cubans experienced a long history of repression. Aline Helg, comments on the oppressive nature of the Afro-Cuban existence during the Spanish colonial rule by stating:

On January 8th, 1959, Fidel Castro and his rebel army marched triumphantly into Havana, Cuba, having overthrown corrupt dictator Fulgencio Batista the week earlier. It was the fruition of the Cuban Revolution, and the dramatic shift in power was about to radically alter the country’s political, social and economic course forever. The positive and negative effects of the revolution on the Cuban people, however, as well as the condition of Cuba’s economy pre and post-revolution, is subject to heated debate. Castro’s iron-fisted regime was the introduction of communism into the western hemisphere, and now, over fifty years later, the Cuban Revolution continues to be one of the most controversial events of the twentieth century. Despite the criticism levelled at Fidel Castro and his communist regime, however, the Cuban Revolution was necessary in improving the quality of life for the majority of Cuban citizens. The four fundamental categories on which to assess this are healthcare, education, economy and governance. By comparing the country’s overall performance under Fulgencio Batista versus under Fidel Castro in these areas crucial to a fully-functioning nation, it can be shown that the Cuban Revolution was a necessary and positive change in Cuban society which benefitted the majority of citizens.

Castro 's regime has been credited with opening 10,000 new schools and increasing literacy to 98 percent.(Cuba Headlines 2009). Cubans enjoy a universal health care system, which has decreased infant mortality to 11 deaths in 1,000(Vanguard News 2016).

Current events in Cuba have caught a lot of attention, as we witness a historical shift in

The topic of race and its impact on the Cuban society has been a subject that has intrigued scholars, writers and researchers since the inception of the country. The Cuban people have seen a tremendous transformation since the Cuban Revolution in 1959, since then the people have seen how socio-economic, cultural foundations and racism has been fought for. Being a communist country Cuba had eliminated the process of private ownership as well as the economic and social bases that countries need to flourish. Throughout history in Cuba you had tend to see that the whites were economically and socially elite to the blacks. They had used racial ideologies and tactics to maintain their domination over the minority groups in Cuba at the time. There have been advancements since the 20th

Cuban human rights have been under the scrutiny of their government for many decades (Britanncia). Their rights were suppressed due to a variety of people’s fear to speak up because of the consequences that may follow. The United States’ bill of rights are definitely a privilege to have acknowledging the data on Cuban society Soon micro-aggression will develop not only on college campuses but in public places as well. Once that happens, will we convert into a socialist economy like Cuba? Bernie Sanders, a democratic candidate, has similar intensions about the control of government as Castro.

Indeed, many people including me, have heard about the embargo that the U.S. had against Cuba for more than half a century or the way people have limitations with food and supplies, but we didn’t really have to see the bigger picture of the problem through media nowadays. The ration system and dictatorship of the country contribute immensely to the degree of poverty experienced in the nation. Deviance and crime is well practiced by many people due to the extreme levels of poverty and all of that is unfortunately just creating instability, fear and discomfort among

Throughout the documentary we see many things wrong with the resources people receive, we see this primarily with money. There are two types of currency in Cuba, peso and cuc, even having certain money makes you more privileged than others. Peso was described as being worth almost nothing that can buy basic necessities such as rice and coffee, while cuc on the other hand is described as more privileged. People with access to this money are able to buy things like shampoo, strollers and handbags; things that everyone should be able to have access to. Having special rights because of money seems to be very common in Cuba, there was a moment in the documentary when the narrator was denied access to one of the best hospitals located in Cuba because he didn’t have enough money, this comes to

Cuba and the Affects of the Embargo The island nation of Cuba, located just ninety miles off the coast of Florida, is home to 11 million people and has one of the few remaining communist regimes in the world. Cuba’s leader, Fidel Castro, came to power in 1959 and immediately instituted a communist program of sweeping economic and social changes. Castro allied his government with the Soviet Union and seized and nationalized billions of dollars of American property. U.S. relations with Cuba have been strained ever since. A trade embargo against Cuba that was imposed in 1960 is still in place today. Despite severe economic suffering and increasing isolation from the world community, Castro remains committed to communism. (Close Up

The Cuban people have been under the harsh dictatorship of both Felgenico Batista and Fidel Castro. They both had very strict policies and gave the Cuban people limited or no freedom at all. Batista and Castro were similar but yet different. One major difference that they had was that Batista was friendly with the United States and he had respect for American interest. On the other hand Fidel Castro hasn’t been as friendly with the United States, so the U.S has a trade embargo that restricts and American company to do business with Cuba and also U.S citizens are prohibited from traveling to Cuba unless for special circumstances.