Irrational and Inhumane: The Reality of the Embargo on Cuba

The United States has had a complex, tumultuous and storied history with its Caribbean neighbor, Cuba. Relations between the two were seldom genial and often confrontational, and in 1962 tensions culminated with President John F. Kennedy signing an Executive Order prohibiting all U.S. trade and travel to Cuba. The embargo has been strengthened to the point where it is now in violation of international humanitarian law. Further, it has failed entirely in its primary objective of crippling Fidel Castro’s regime and has wrought painful economic and nutritional consequences upon the Cuban people.

            In 1898 Cuba was liberated from Spain with the help of the United States during the Spanish-American War. In 1902 Cuba was given freedom from the United States, which had been controlling it for the past four years. The Platt Amendment, however, was one catch that bestowed upon the United States the continuous right to intervene in Cuban affairs. This Amendment endured for 30 years, until Franklin D. Roosevelt abolished the stipulation (Arcelaschi 1). This, however, did not indicate an end to U.S. involvement in Cuba.

            In 1952, the Cuban presidential elections were subverted by a man named Fulgencio Batista, who intervened via military coup and seized power. Under Mr. Batista’s regime the United States dominated the economy, political dissidents were brutally suppressed, and corruption was rampant amongst government officials (Cuba Before Castro 1). Due to the unchecked social problems Cuba was facing, a man named Fidel Castro was spurred to action.

            Over the next six years, public support for Batista plummeted and Castro amassed a revolutionary force to extricate Batista from office. In 1958 the United States ended its military aid to the Batista government, and on January 1st, 1959, Batista’s government collapsed. Fidel Castro swept in and took over whilst Batista and many of his supporters fled the country (Arcelaschi 1). What followed was a massive effort to exterminate the widespread, inherited economic and social problems leftover from Batista that Cuba faced. In this push, Castro nationalized roughly $2 billion in US-owned property and US oil refinery companies, leading to an expedited rate of deterioration in U.S. – Cuba relations (Cuba Timeline 1936-1960 3).

            Animosity continued to mount for the next two years, and from April 17 – April 19th, 1961, U.S.-funded Cuban exiles attempted to overthrow the Castro regime. The rebels failed and the attempt, called the Bay of Pigs Invasion, embarrassed the Kennedy administration and further cemented the enmity between the U.S. and Cuba (Gall 1).