The Role of Nationalism in Castros Regime in Cuba - Essay Example

The Role of Nationalism in Castro’s Regime in Cuba Introduction The of Nationalism has defined politics over the years. This paper examines the regime of Fidel Castro and takes into account the role of nationalism during his reign. In this regard, nationalism is better understood as the identification of people to a nation. It is the notion that people from the same nation share similar interests and values particular only to themselves. It is however of important to note that people use nationalism in different ways and have different ideologies regarding the whole subject. Castro arose to power in 1959 after leading a nationalist revolution that overthrew the previous government. He attempted to manifest nationalism through two ways i.e. socialism and communism. From the analysis and review of various literatures, I therefore argue that nationalism in Cuba was a repression to support Castro’s government. Role of nationalism in Castro’s reign Before he came into power, Castro was viewed as a nationalist and this saw him lead a revolution that brought him into power through support from various nationalists. This move was however not supported by the U.S because they did not want a charismatic nationalist like Castro to lead Cuba. In any case, the United States had a lot of vested interest in the country and needed a leader they could manipulate, certainly not Castro1. Castro came up with an ideology of getting people to work for the benefit of all and not just individuals. During his reign, he valued national land and he did positive work for the people. This was seen when he bought back foreign owned land that was Cuban. He allowed Cuba to be run by its people. Through this, he garnered a lot of support from the masses. However, he later changed and became a communist when he integrated with the Soviet Union which put this imposition on him. This changed the notion of nationalism and it is from this perspective he used the nationalist ideology as a way of suppressing people. However he continued gaining much support from the people even as his regime became more despotic. Nationalism was one of the core elements in Castro’s platform. His core punch line was ‘with Fidel everything, against Fidel Nothing’2. In this case, those who opposed him were viewed as enemies of the state and had no place in Cuba. This propelled people to be in support of him even if his ideologies were unfavorable. No one among his elites questioned his role as a demonstration of nationalism. He used a manifestation of culture in nationalism by announcing to upper and middle classes that he shared their cultural and ideological prejudices. This was a form of communism whereby this people were to continue enjoying their employment as well as other benefits if they were in support of him. He moved to nationalize Cuba schools, industries and hospitals. This was a way of imposing communist tendencies into the country. This in essence was to have control over this institutions keeping in mind that these people could support him and not oppose him in order for their institutions to succeed. However, many people faced many challenges such as the scarcity of jobs in the country. Because of the great economic hardships, the workers were less likely to oppose him. This therefore justifies that nationalism was a form of repression. He used nationalism to counter policies that were against his regime. An example of such policy was the economic Embargo from the United States which wanted to see him out of power but he got support out of nationalism because of the notion that a sovereign society was not to get interference from other states. Because the United States had opposed him as a result of his communist ties, they did not get support from the people hence he continued to reign. He used unfriendly policies from the U.S in order to stir up nationalism hence convincing a lot of Cubans. This again was a repression on the ideology of nationalism. He used socialism as one of the manifestation of nationalism for repression. In addition, he used the unfavorable relationship with the United States to gain more support from his people by convincing them that they had to believe in their country and nothing else. This again was a repression on the ideology of nationalism. He used socialism as one of the manifestation of nationalism for repression. One instance that depicted this was on a demonstration of 5th August 1994 in Havana. 200-300 men were demanding to be given a boat to travel to Miami but a larger crowd that was Pro-Castro confronted them and Castro told the media that those were anti-socials that were misled by U.S3. Castro’s government organized a strategy for defense against invasion called a ‘war of all the people.’ This was a widespread guerilla campaign which was to act as a show of nationalism. People joined religion because of hardships and he complied with religion as much as he did not like it for his own interests. He encouraged them to join the communist party hence repressing nationalism. He became an environmentalist in 1990. This was also intended to use nationalism because he came up with campaigns against global warming and waste of natural resources and he accused the United States as being the primary pollutant. He depicted himself as a nationalist with the intention of making people to be against the US. In a way, most of his deeds were always geared towards painting him as a true nationalist who was committed to the interests of his country. He was a proponent of anti-globalization. He presented himself as a nationalist with legitimacy. He used nationalism to argue that globalization brought control of multi- nationals in the country which undermined nationalism because people could not identify themselves with their nation. Again, he was against US hegemony. His opponents were treated as enemies of the nation. This saw a lot of persecutions to those who were against his rule. This saw few nationalist movements against him which could not oppose him and bring about change4. Castro used a language of racial equality as a depiction of nationalism to conceal his racist beliefs. His regime used relations with black activists who were in the US in order to keep racism at home. He came up with a one party socialist state. This was a form of suppression of nationalism because it required people to be loyal to the party as a show that they identified themselves with their nation. He united the popular socialist party, MR-26-7and revolutionary Directorate. He also used nationalism to persecute social i.e. homosexuals and prostitutes saying that they were lacking from a working community. He argued that such people were to be working in order for them to develop a country which was one show of nationalism. Nationalism was also oppressed by way of elections. This was to act as a side show that his rule was legitimate but concealed its unfairness because he won in six elections which could not be possible through democratic processes5. Conclusion From the discussions and evidence that is given, it is evident that nationalization was just another ideology that was used to the advantage of the government during the regime of Fidel Castro. His leadership was a form of dictatorship that enjoyed the legitimacy of the people since it was brought about and governed through nationalist perceptions. It is clear from the research that the role of nationalism to stand against unfair rule was utilized at the minimal sense and was not successful. Very few people became activists while a larger majority did not which demoralized the group because they believed that they could not oppose enough to bring change. Due to this repression, it saw his rule last for a long time until he fell sick and stepped down for his brother Raul who promised to bring back Cuba into economic stability. There was non-transition for longer period not that he was a good leader but because he was a leader of charisma who managed to take people to his side. Works Cited LoIpez, Juan J.. Democracy delayed the case of Castro's Cuba. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2002. Print. Rausch, Joseph. "The Significance of Nationalism for the Spread of Communism to Vietnam and Cuba." Nationalism. N.p., 9 Oct. 2012. Web. 8 Apr. 2013. . Shafer, Boyd C.. Faces of nationalism: new realities and old myths. [1st ed. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1972. Print. Snyder, Louis L.. The new nationalism,. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 2005. Print. "[Regents Prep Global History] Nationalism: Revolutions." Oswego City School District Regents Exam Prep Center. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Apr. 2013. . Read More