Cuban Revolution

Fulgencio Batista

• Ruler in Cuba in late 1950s

• Dictator• Much poverty• Education and heath

care were good for most citizens

• Castro led a group of rebels against Batista

Fidel Castro

• Made himself dictator in 1959

• Communist government

• Everyone who supported Batista arrested; most were executed by a firing squad

Cuba’s Communist Government

• Declared all property belonging to Americans now to belong to Cuba’s government

• All farms, factories, and businesses also became Cuba’s property

• Cuban newspapers, radio, and television were shut down

• Government was the ONLY source for news

• Churches were closed – all church property was taken by the government

Benefits under Castro• Hospitals and

Schools improved

• Women and blacks became better educated and had better jobs

Relations with the United States

• Cuba and the US do not get along well!!!!

• Embargo on goods from Cuba

Cuban Missile Crisis

• 1962• Allowed the Soviet Union to build a

missile launching complex in Cuba• Missiles could reach US cities• President Kennedy demanded that

the missiles be removed or the US would invade Cuba….Soviets agreed to remove missiles so the US did not invade