Cuban Revolution In America: Havana And The Making Of A United States Left, 1968-1992

368 Pages·2018·7.826 MB·English

by  Teishan A. Latner

Cuban Revolution in America
Justice, Power, and Politics
coeditors
Heather Ann Thompson
Rhonda Y. Williams
editorial advisory board
Peniel E. Joseph
Matthew D. Lassiter
Daryl Maeda
Barbara Ransby
Vicki L. Ruiz
Marc Stein
The Justice, Power, and Politics series publishes
new works in history that explore the myriad
struggles for justice, battles for power, and shifts
in politics that have shaped the United States
over time. Through the lenses of justice, power,
and politics, the series seeks to broaden scholarly
debates about America’s past as well as to inform
public discussions about its future.
More information on the series, including a
complete list of books published, is available at
http://justicepowerandpolitics.com/.
Cuban Revolution
havana and in America
the making of a
united states left,
1968–1992
Teishan A. Latner
the university of north carolina press | chapel hill
© 2018 The University of North Carolina Press
All rights reserved
Designed by April Leidig
Set in Arno by Copperline Book Services, Inc.
Manufactured in the United States of America
The University of North Carolina Press has been a
member of the Green Press Initiative since 2003.
Cover illustration: Fidel Castro speaking to members of the
Venceremos Brigade. Photo by George Cohen.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Latner, Teishan, author.
Title: Cuban revolution in America : Havana and the making of a United States
Left, 1968–1992 / Teishan A. Latner.
Other titles: Justice, power, and politics.
Description: Chapel Hill : The University of North Carolina Press, [2017] |
Series: Justice, power, and politics | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2017033404| ISBN 9781469635460 (cloth : alk. paper) |
ISBN 9781469635477 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Cuba — History — Revolution, 1959 — Influence. | New Left —
United States. | United States — Foreign relations — Cuba. | Cuba — Foreign
relations — United States.
Classification: LCC F1788 .L3393 2017 | DDC 327.7307291 — dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017033404
For my parents,
Laurie and Joel Latner
A billboard on a Havana street in May 1972 reads “Freedom for Angela Davis.”
Photo by John van Hasselt/Corbis.
Contents
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction. Cuban Revolution in America 1
1 Venceremos Means “We Will Win”:
The Venceremos Brigades, Cuba, and the U.S. Left 27
2 Missiles, in Human Form:
Cuba and the Specter of Foreign Subversion in America 75
3 Revolution in the Air:
Hijacking, Political Protest, and U.S.- Cuba Relations 123
4 Joven Cuba inside the Colossus:
The Antonio Maceo Brigade and the Making of a
Cuban American Left 153
5 Assata Is Welcome Here:
Black Radicalism, Political Asylum, and the
Diplomacy of Exile and Freedom 199
Epilogue. Unfinished Revolutions 265
Notes 273
Bibliography 317
Index 335
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Figures
vi “Freedom for Angela Davis” billboard
36 Members of the Venceremos Brigade pose while working in the
sugarcane fields, December 1969
40 Fidel Castro and members of the Venceremos Brigade pause while
cutting sugarcane together on Christmas Day, 1969
52 Satirical advertisement in the pages of Tricontinental
64 Venceremos Brigade members and Cuban representatives hold a joint
panel discussion, International Women’s Day, March 7, 1970
85 P oster, 1980, depicting global support for the Cuban revolution
striking back against U.S. power
87 Venceremos Brigade members and Vietnamese delegates from the
National Liberation Front embrace in December 1969
111 “We will destroy imperialism from the outside; they will destroy it
from the inside,” poster, 1968
135 Image celebrating African American militancy and black nationalism
149 A December 1972 cartoon from the Buffalo Evening News
164 The spring 1978 cover of Areíto
178 Antonio Maceo Brigade members visit the José Martí Mausoleum
178 Members of the Antonio Maceo Brigade with Ramón Castro
179 Antonio Maceo Brigade members with Fidel Castro after a meeting
with Castro and other Cuban officials, 1978
212 “Free all political prisoners,” poster, 1968
212 “Freedom for the Wilmington 10,” poster, ca. 1971
213 “Power to the People — George,” poster, ca. 1971