2009-09-18.
Dr. Brian Latell
(www.miscelaneasdecuba.net).- The death last week of Juan Almeida,
Cuba's most prominent Afro-descended leader, leaves just three
"historicos," survivors of all the revolution's conflicts and crises of
the last fifty-six years.
Only the Castro brothers and Ramiro Valdes remain among those who
assaulted the Moncada garrison in July 1953, were imprisoned on the Isle
of Pines, trained in Mexico after their release, waded ashore
calamitously from the Granma, fought for two years as guerrillas in
Cuba's eastern sierras, and entered Havana triumphantly in January 1959
to take up official duties.
Yet, despite his heroic credentials --and like Valdes-- Almeida was not
always fully trusted by the Castro brothers. In the end, nonetheless,
his humble roots, racial identity,
Castro's guerrilla movement produced few other black warriors and none
who distinguished themselves in combat to the extent he did. Almeida,
according to Herbert Matthews, was a "fanatically brave" leader.
He was wounded at least once, and according to Che Guevara, probably
saved his life in an early skirmish with Batista's forces. Almeida led
guerrillas in a fierce battle in September 1958 when a high ranking
Batista colonel was taken prisoner, the highest ranking officer captured
by Castro's forces during the Sierra Maestra campaigns.
Almeida was then, and until his death, especially close to Raul Castro,
who promoted him to the rank of comandante early in the guerrilla war
and gave him command of a guerrilla column, only the third one created.
Years later he and Valdes, and only a few others, were honored with the
title Commander of the Revolution. He served in a variety of capacities
in Raul's armed forces ministry, as chief of staff, and in the mid
1970's as acting minister when Raul resided in the Soviet Union for
extended military training.
Almeida is not known, however, to have served either as a clandestine
volunteer or a leader of Cuban expeditionary forces in any of the third
world conflicts of the 1960's and 1970's where Cuba intervened. There is
no evidence that he ever held the rank of general after the new system
of military ranking was introduced in the 1970's.
For many years he occupied prominent positions in the highest ranks of
the Cuban Communist Party and its predecessor organizations. In March
1962 he was one of twenty five named to the directorate of the
Integrated Revolutionary Organizations, ORI, that fused the pre-Castro
communist party with the two leading "revolutionary" organizations that
waged war against the Batista regime. Almeida was one of twelve members
inducted from Castro's own 26th of July Movement, and the only
Afro-Cuban among them. Later, he served continuously on the Communist
Party Politburo.
But it has never been suggested that Almeida performed policy making or
important administrative functions other than as a figurehead or
ceremonial front man. He rarely gave speeches, avoiding situations where
he would be asked to speak extemporaneously.
He was described by one early historian of the revolution as "almost
illiterate," and by another as of "limited intellect." He had little or
no formal education before the revolution. An apprentice bricklayer when
he joined Fidel Castro's incipient movement before Moncada, he is said
until then to have performed manual labor from the age of
Even long after his retirement from active service he greeted African
and Caribbean leaders visiting Cuba and appeared at government rallies
and provincial ribbon-cuttings, especially in the country's eastern
provinces where majorities of the populace are Afro-descended. He went
with Fidel to the United Nations in 1960, lodged with him at the Theresa
Hotel in Harlem, and was conspicuous in ceremonial dealings with
African-Americans.
Most historians agree that he was always malleable once he devoted
himself to the Castro brothers. Hugh Thomas wrote that "he was willing
to follow Fidel anywhere under any circumstances." Tad Szulc described
him as a fidelista "knight."
But in the mid 1960's, and possibly again in more recent years, Almeida
may have strayed from such blind fealty. Defectors and refugees have
reported that after the Missile Crisis and the purges and tumultuous
political upheavals of the 1960's he at least temporarily lost faith in
Fidel's leadership.
According to uncorroborated accounts, he was attracted to the conniving
of high ranking conspirators in the armed forces. Whatever his
involvement may have been, he was subsequently cleared or rehabilitated
by the Castros and then served for several more decades as their most
celebrated Afro-descended revolutionary.
His death has not altered the dynamics of Cuba's leadership dynamics,
and as the foremost symbol of Afro-Cuban participation in the
revolution's senior counsels, he has been succeeded by younger men,
including Esteban Lazo. But as one of the last remaining links to all
the myths and exaggerated history of determined revolutionary struggle
he is survived now by only three others, also in their twilight years.
I wish to acknowledge the valuable support in the preparation of this
analysis of my University of Miami student research assistant, Ms.
Lolita Sosa.
* Dr. Brian Latell, distinguished Cuba analyst and recent author of the
book, After Fidel: The Inside Story of Castro's Regime and Cuba's Next
Leader, is a Senior Research Associate at ICCAS. He has informed
American and foreign presidents, cabinet members, and legislators about
Cuba and Fidel Castro in a number of capacities. He served in the early
1990s as National Intelligence Officer for Latin America at the Central
Intelligence Agency and taught at Georgetown University for a quarter
century. Dr. Latell has written, lectured, and consulted extensively.
* The CTP, funded by a grant from the U.S. Agency for International
Development (USAID), can be contacted at P.O. Box 248174, Coral Gables,
Florida 33124-3010, Tel: 305-284-CUBA (2822), Fax: 305-284-4875, and by
email at
Welcome to The Latell Report. The Report, analyzing Cuba's contemporary
domestic and foreign policy, is published monthly except August and
December and distributed by the electronic information service of the
Cuba Transition Project (CTP) at the University of Miami's Institute for
Cuban and Cuban-American Studies (ICCAS).
The Latell Report is a publication of ICCAS and no government funding
has been used in its publication. The opinions expressed herein are
those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ICCAS
and/or the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
THE CASTROS' BLACK KNIGHT - Misceláneas de Cuba (18 September 2009)
http://www.miscelaneasdecuba.net/web/article.asp?artID=22938
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