Was Fidel Cuba's George Washington? No!

ABC’s Jim Avila says that “Fidel Castro was Cuba’s George Washington.”

Really? Washington was the American commander in the field during our war for independence against Britain. Fidel Castro was the commander in the field in Cuba’s revolution to overthrow the Cuban dictator, Fulgencio Batista. There the similarity ends.

Washington (and his fellow founders) created a government designed primarily to insure the national security and personal liberty to the American people. The U.S. Constitution that Washington et al. created made no provision for national health care or universal public education. Those matters, at least in the first instance, were left to the states to deal with as they saw fit.


Fidel Castro eschewed liberty for the Cuban people and instead opted for “equality.” In lieu of personal liberty, the Cuban people were given free national health care, and a free public education -- a public education where every student was taught precisely what the Castro government wanted taught.

Washington’s America is the nation-of-choice to which people from around the world have chosen to immigrate for 200 years. It has also been a place from which any dissident could freely leave.

Nobody immigrates to Cuba. Castro’s Cuba is a prison from which people escapee across shark-infested waters to America: 120,000 in 1980 alone.

When the American Revolutionary War was over, neither Washington nor his administration imprisoned Americans who opposed the Revolution, or Americans who agitated against out new Constitution, or who spoke or worked to undermine Washington’s presidency.

When Castro’s seized power, hundreds of members of Batista’s government were rounded up, quickly tried and executed.

When Washington became president, private ownership of American businesses and farms, large and small, saw no change.

When Castro became prime minister, foreign corporations and plantations were “nationalized” -- i.e., confiscated at far below their fair market value. Castro’s First Agrarian Reform Act limited the size of land holdings and forbade foreign property ownership. The pretext was to “develop a class of independent farmers.”

Instead, the state essentially assumed land ownership, with the farmers becoming mere government employees.

Then (1959) came the purges of military and government officials and the suppression of any media critical of Castro’s policies. Even Manuel Urritia, the Revolution’s first president was purged.

Washington avoided foreign alliances, and in his “farewell address” cautioned his countrymen “to avoid entangling alliances.”

Castro, instead, established diplomatic relations with the Communist USSR, and accepted 100 Russian “advisers” to help organize his “defense committee.” When Castro agreed to purchase oil from Russia, American refineries on the island, refused to process the oil.

This gave Castro his justification for their expropriation.”What followed was President Kennedy’s Bay of Pigs invasion/fiasco. Kennedy’s ineptitude allowed Castro to consolidate his power.

On May 1, 1961, Castro announced an end to democratic elections in Cuba. At year’s end, Castro declared himself a Marxist-Leninist and announced the Cuban government was adopting communist economic and political policies.


When Castro agreed to place Russian nuclear missiles in Cuba, an American Naval Blockade followed, and for 13 days the world was on the brink of nuclear war.

Washington tried to create an America without parties or factions. Castro opted for one party. In 1965, he merged his revolutionary cadre with Cuba’s Communist Party, and became its head.

Washington refused to become a king. After being freely elected twice, he retired after eight years and became a private citizen. A free election followed.

Fidel Castro, a Stalinist, clung to power from 1959 until 2008 -- 49 years!

He turned Cuban power over to his brother.

Castro-philes credit Castro with setting up 10,000 schools, and increasing Cuban literacy to 98 percent. They extol his “universal health care system.” But there was a terrible price.

Unions lost their right to strike. An independent press was eliminated. The Catholic Church and other churches were shackled. Dissidents were imprisoned or executed. People drive cars from the 1950s. In June 2012, Cuba’s National Statistics and Information Bureau disclosed that the current average salary of Cubans had reached 466 pesos (US $22) a month!

Fidel Castro? Mao, maybe. But not George Washington. Schools and health care? Si.

Liberty? No.

Posted: QCOline.com December 2, 2016
Copyright 2016, John Donald O'Shea