Fidel Castro, heroic Communist leader of Cuba, departed from us on November 25, 2016. On the occasion of the anniversary of his passing, we shall not mourn his death but rather celebrate the titanic legacy he left behind.
In 1953, the Cuban working class began their revolution, led by Comrade Castro, to rid the Cuban lands of the US comprador dictator, Fulgencio Batista. After six hard years of struggle, the July 26th Movement succeeded in overthrowing Batista.
For decades, Cuba succeeded in building the first socialist society in the Western Hemisphere, despite being encumbered by US attempts at destabilization, counter-revolution by the US government-backed Bastistaite gusanos, the Missile Crisis of 1962, and the seemingly unending embargo which has held Cuba back from receiving vital resources to industrialize.
In 1989, renegade leader of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev visited Cuba, where he suggested the Cuban leaders get behind the catastrophic idea of Perestroika. On the 31st anniversary of the overthrow of Bastista on December 7, 1989, Comrade Fidel gave a speech entitled Socialism or Death to commemorate the heroes of the Cuban Revolution as well as to reject Gorbachev’s push for Perestroika in Socialist Cuba. Here we will commemorate Comrade Fidel’s legacy by citing essential excerpts from his speech.
In response to Gorbachev’s suggestion for Cuba to adopt market socialist policies Comrade Fidel stated:
But, can socialism be improved by forsaking Marxism-Leninism’s most basic principles? Why must the so-called reforms be along capitalist lines? If those ideas are truly revolutionary, as some claim, why do they receive the imperialist leaders’ unanimous, enthusiastic support?
He went on further to say
In Cuba, we are engaged in a process of rectification. No revolution or truly socialist rectification is possible without a strong, disciplined, respected Party. Such a process cannot be advanced by slandering socialism, destroying its values, casting slurs on the Party, demoralizing its vanguard, abandoning the Party’s guiding role, eliminating social discipline and sowing chaos and anarchy everywhere. This may foster a counterrevolution, but not revolutionary changes.
Comrade Fidel understood that socialism could not be fixed with capitalist tools such as market socialist policies like Perestroika.
Later in the speech, Comrade Castro reassured the Cuban people that the hyenas of Wall Street who were frothing at the mouth for the destruction of the Soviet Union and all socialist societies would not succeed in taking down Cuba. In another passage he stated:
The US imperialists think that Cuba won’t be able to hold out and that the new situation in the socialist community will inexorably help them to bring our Revolution to its knees. Cuba is not a country in which socialism came in the wake of the victorious divisions of the Red Army. In Cuba, our people created our socialist society in the course of a legitimate, heroic struggle. The 30 years in which we have stood firm against the most powerful empire on earth, that sought to destroy our Revolution, bear witness to our political and moral strength.
Comrade Fidel Castro eloquently concluded his speech by reminding the Cuban people of the sacrifices the Cubans made, and why they did so:
We Cuban Communists and the millions of our people’s revolutionary soldiers will carry out the role assigned to us in history, not only as the first socialist state in the western hemisphere but also as staunch front-line defenders of the noble cause of all the destitute, exploited people in the world. We have never aspired to having custody of the banners and principles which the revolutionary movement has defended throughout its heroic and inspiring history. However, if fate were to decree that, one day, we would be among the last defenders of socialism in a world in which US imperialism had realized Hitler’s dreams of world domination, we would defend this bulwark to the last drop of our blood.
These men and women whom we are honorably laying to rest today in the land of their birth gave their lives for the most treasured values of our history and our Revolution.
They died fighting against colonialism and neocolonialism. They died fighting against racism and apartheid. They died fighting against the plunder and exploitation to which the Third World peoples are subjected. They died fighting for the independence and sovereignty of those peoples. They died fighting for the right of all peoples in the world to well-being and development. They died fighting so there would be no hunger or begging so that all sick people would have doctors, all children would have schools, and all human beings would have jobs, shelter and food. They died so there would be no oppressors or oppressed no exploiters or exploited. They died fighting for the dignity and freedom of all men and women. They died Fighting for true peace and security for all nations. They died defending the ideals of Cespedes and Maximo Gomez. They died defending the ideals of Marti and Maceo. They died defending the ideals of Marx, Engels and Lenin. They died defending the ideals of the October Revolution and the example it set throughout the world. They died for socialism. They died for internationalism. They died for the proud, revolutionary homeland that is today’s Cuba. We will follow their example! Eternal glory to them! Socialism or death! Homeland or Death! We Shall Overcome!
Though we lost Comrade Fidel Castro eight years ago, the Cuban communists have held steadfast against the embargo and other US intervention designed to destroy Cuban socialism. With a continued devotion to Marxist-Leninist principles, Cuba will no doubt weather the storm of anti-imperialist struggle. The Party of Communists USA resolutely stands behind the Cuban people and the Communist Party of Cuba in its fight against US imperialism and in its struggle to continue its building of socialism.
