Goodbye to the Colony

Each person, place, and idea is a product of its past; the island of Cuba is no exception. Cuban colonization grew rapidly in wake of its discovery in 1492, and would remain a colony in some form over the next 400 years.

Spanish Decolonization

The crown of Spain “held” the island from its discovery by Christopher Columbus through the late 1890s. However, during the mid-1800s some Cubans wanted to throw off the bonds of Spanish colonization. This resulted in a series of guerilla wars that began with Carlos Manuel de Cespedes issuing his “Grito de Yara” in 1868. A proclamation that declared Cuba free from Spain and freed his slaves to fight for Cuban independence.

Guerilla wars were fought on and off for years. During the periods of aggression, sugar production would come to a grinding halt. This affected American investors and began to get the attention of the American people. However, it was Spanish atrocities at reconcentration camps that prompted the American peoples desire for involvement. Atrocities were popularized and exaggerated by yellow reporters in their quest to sell more newspapers. Nevertheless, the attention of the United States was captured.

With the sinking of the USS Maine in Havana Harbor in 1898, the American people caught war-fever. The war was a resounding U.S. victory and propelled individuals, like Theodore Roosevelt, into household names. The war was brought to a close with the signing of the Treaty of Paris, which among other things dictated the Spanish decolonization of Cuba. 

American “Involvement”

Cuba was free of Spain only to gain the guiding hand of the United States. Cuba was under the control of the U.S. military from January 1989 – 1902. While drafting their Constitution, Cuban officials were given the Platt Amendment. An American amendment that stated that the United States has the right to intervene in Cuban should their independence be threatened. It also states that the U.S. Navy would keep a base at Guantanamo Bay.

American industries also invested heavily in the island. Companies like United Fruit Company and Cuban Telephone Company invested their money and bought vast tracts of land in Cuba. This would be a source of much controversy later.

From 1902-1933, the island of Cuba continued in a mildly democratic manner. They allowed the election of officials and were considered a success of U.S. diplomacy. However, in 1933, Fulgencio Batista took control and became dictator until 1959. During his time as leader, Batista became a hated man and it is not difficult to understand the revolutionary mindset that followed.

American “Decolonization”

In 1959, the revolutionary minds of Fidel Castro and Che Guevara brought a new kind of freedom to the Cuban people. Their forces managed to overthrow Batista and they established a government with radical ideals. Their reforms were incredibly popular with the common man. The new government restructured the entirety of Cuban society. It limited land ownership, limited the cost of renting, initiated industrialization, and expanded employment.

Tensions began to grow between Cuba and the United States when the new government refused due process to former supporters of the Batista regime. Things continued to decline when the government seized lands held by American businesses, among which were the Cuban Telephone Company, United Fruit Company, and Coca Cola.

The American government and the Central Intelligence Agency began to plot to overthrow Castro. They devised elaborate assassination attempts and finally settled on a counter-revolution. They gathered and trained Cuban exiles in Miami. They were to land on Cuba at the Bay of Pigs on April 17, 1961 following American airstrikes on the island. These counter-revolutionaries were to land with American air-support. However, at the final moment, President John Kennedy became apprehensive as to its use and called off the support. As a result the invaders were slaughtered and Fidel Castro declared Cuba to be a Communist state.

By declaring his state to be Communist, Castro loosely allied himself with the United States greatest enemy: the U.S.S.R. With this, the tensions between the U.S. and Cuba became unbearable and in 1962 all trade with the island was banned. In October 1962, tensions mounted greatly with the discovery of Soviet ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear bombs to most of southern United States.

By the end of October, the crisis had been averted. But, relations between the U.S. and the former colony remained and remain shaky. There are many incidents that led to the decolonization of Cuba by Spain and the United States. However, as of current, Cuba has maintained the ideals of Communism and has thrived doing so. While relations between the U.S. and her nearby neighbor remain unclear, we all wait for what comes next.

Sources:

"Cuba." U.S. Department of State. 7 Nov. 2011. Web. 03 Dec. 2011. <http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2886.htm>.

Goldfield, David R. "The Spanish-American War." The American Journey. Vol. II. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2008. 261-65. Print.

Staten, Clifford L. (2003). The History of Cuba. (pp. 31-34). Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group

Of Former Slaves

 

Today we once again break from the mundane to reach into the crevasses of history and reality to talk to Manuel, a former slave on the island of Cuba. These are his responses, as best I can reproduce his thick Afro-Cuban accent. 

“Manuel, in what year did you receive your freedom?”

“I got my freedom in 1886. We all did.”

“But slavery had ended on the island in 1880?”

“Slavery had only ended in name, we was ‘apprentices’ under the patronato system. But we didn’t get wages, and we couldn’t leave our masters.”

“So, how long were you a slave on the island?”

“My whole life ‘til I was 37.”

“What did you do after you were given your freedom? Did you stay on with your former master?”

“Not at first. Bunch of us moved to our own community and grew crops for ourselves.”

“That must have been a hard adjustment.”

“Jaja, not just for us. Old mista had a rough time on the sugar plantation too.”

“What do you mean Manuel?”

“With all of us freed, he didn’t have nobody to work his cane. Not for a while at least. Then they started bringing them in to work.”

“Who is ‘them’?”

“They called them lots of names. We found out later they were from India and China; from all over Asia. They say it’s a lot like here there.”

“You mentioned they brought them? Were they slaves?”

“Not exactly, the ones I knew said they got some wages. But, they were living in our old homes, doing our old work, under the same old whip.”

“How did that make you feel?”

“All mixed up. Freedom is a great thing. Nothing compares to being able to walk where you want. But, we didn’t have our jobs no more. We was replaced by them and that made lotsa us mad.”

“What was that freedom like?”

“Like I said, for a while, even after ‘slavery’ was over we was still doing the same jobs. That wasn’t real freedom. But, after things started bettering. Some of us kept working in the cane fields, while others did special jobs. Our women still had to work, but our children could go to municipal schools. We all wanted them to do better than we did.”

“What about you? What did you do after patronato came to a close?”

“I went back to the cane fields. I did the same work as before, but now I was making my own money.”

That must have been tough, returning to those fields with all of the memories and hardships. Why would you do it?”

“It was all I knew. I had to provide for my kids. I guess I hoped that they would be able to grow up and raise a family that never knew the whip of slavery.”

The above dialog is mostly fictional. However, for former slaves on Cuba this scene might have been all-too-real. It is true that slavery “ended” in 1880 when a system of apprenticeship was instituted, which bound former slaves to the land without pay. Finally, in 1886, the peculiar institution was overturned and while many left the cane fields, many were not able. Freedom was a complex concept that held a much different meaning then, yet for these former slaves, it was glorious.

Sources:

“Passenger Lists to and from Cuba”. CubaGenWeb. (11/19/11). Retrieved from <http://www.cubagenweb.org/pass.htm>

Sierra, J.A. “End of Slavery in Cuba”. Historyofcuba.com. (11/19/11). Retrieved from <http://www.historyofcuba.com/history/race/EndSlave.htm>

Staten, Clifford L. (2003). The History of Cuba. (pp. 31-34). Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group

The End of Slavery

The island of Cuba was among the last strongholds for the “peculiar institution” of slavery. While the British, French, Danes, and Dutch abolished slavery by 1863, it remained on Cuba until 1886. The end of slavery came after a hard fought rebellion against the Spanish crown, which began in 1868.

On October 10, 1868, Carlos Manuel de Cespedes began the revolt by issuing his “Grito de Yara.” In this declaration, he announced Cuba independent from the Spanish empire and freed his slaves to fight. In doing so, he solidified himself as a true hero and visionary. Cuban rebels would use guerilla tactics to fight the Spanish and disrupt trade. By the end of the war the rebel forces would control much of the eastern portion of the island. The guerilla tactics of the rebellion continued for years, until the Spanish assured the rebels of their freedom in return for an armistice.

The agreement, which followed was the Pact of Zanjon. This was formalized in February of 1878. The leader of the rebel forces, Antonio Maceo, was unable to accept anything short of Cuban independence and an assurance of the end of slavery. As a result, he fled to New York. The war had failed to overthrow the Spanish rule. However, with the value of sugar decreasing, the need for slaves on Cuba was greatly diminished.

While slaves who had fought in the war were given their freedom, the other enslaved people of the island would remain in their servitude. In 1880, the Spanish declared an end to slavery with and patronato of eight years. This was a time for the slaves to “learn how to be free.” During this time, they were still bound to their masters and did not receive compensation for services rendered. On October 7, 1886, a royal decree finally ended slavery on Cuba. The enslaved people were finally free.

A discussion of influential individuals, which aided in the destruction of slavery on Cuba, must start with Carlos Manuel de Cespedes. For it is his vision for a truly free Cuba and people that began the revolt, which eventually helped end slavery. Another key individual is the valiant leader of the forces: Antonio Maceo. Maceo appears to have led the rebels from 1876 to the end of the war. During this time, he often freed slaves who fought for Cuban independence. Looking for the political realm, it is impossible to ignore Alfonso XIII, King of Spain. It was Alfonso XIII who issued the decree of October 7, 1886, which officially ended slavery on the island of Cuba. Yet, it is the combination of these and countless others, which brought about the end to that wretched institution, which plagued the island.

The existence of a seasoning period exemplified in the patronato, shows the Spanish mindset of the era. In their minds the enslaved people would require time to adjust to the idea of being free. However, the “freedom” of the slaves during this six-year period is contestable as they were bound to their masters without pay. Nevertheless, with the royal decree of 7 October, the slaves became former slaves, closing a horrible, bloody chapter in the history of Cuba.

Sources:

Sierra, J.A. “End of Slavery in Cuba”. Historyofcuba.com. (11/12/11). Retrieved from <http://www.historyofcuba.com/history/race/EndSlave.htm>

Staten, Clifford L. (2003). The History of Cuba. (pp. 31-34). Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group

A Woman's Work

This week we take a break from our traditional style of reporting to interview a lovely lady about her life experiences on Cuba: Mrs. Alana S---.

“Alana, When and where were you born?”

“I was born around 1817 in Sierra Leone (Africa).”

“How did you come to be on Cuba?”

“I was brought here when I was about 13 on the slave ship Segundo Rosario. Upon arrival in Havana, I was sold to Mr. S---.“

“Did you come alone, or were you brought with family?”

“Oh no, I wasn’t alone. My two sisters were brought here with me, but they were sold to different plantation owners.”

“Mr. S---, did he own a plantation?”

“Oh yes, our plantation was a good sized sugar plantation, there were usually over eighty of us working there.”

“Alana, tell me a little about the work you did there.”

“My work? It was just like everybody else’s. I got up at daylight and had my breakfast. Then we all went to the cane-fields. Depending on which field and what time of the season there was always lots of work. Sometimes we weeded, sometimes we cut, sometimes we hauled, but the worst time of all was harvest. We had to work fast; sugarcane goes bad quick ya know? Anyways, we had to cut, press, boil, and pack it as quick as we could. During those harvests, we worked all day and night. Many poor slaves just got worked to death. Awful hard working in those fields.”

“You worked in the fields like the men?”

“Sure! We all worked in the fields. Except the children, and still they had light work.”

“Alana, describe to me what it was like living on the plantation.”

“Living on the plantation. Hmm, living like that is about the only living I can remember. We slept in long sheds, with tiny dividers for ‘privacy’. I slept close to Maria, she was a few years older than me, but we were friends. We cooked for ourselves from the gardens we worked on Sundays. There was never much rest or fun, mostly work.”

How about the overseer and Mr. S---, were they good?

“Mr. S--- was a fine enough man, we never saw much of him. He stayed in the house or was off with other plantation owners. The overseer was a different kind of man. He had a wild look in his eye, frightened me like the devil. He would take to whipping us for the slightest thing. I remember stories of him flogging an older slave to death. He was a merciless man with ambition dripping from his brow.”

“What were your biggest fears during that time?“

“Fears? There were lots. I was always scared of getting the lash; I had good reason. You could get lashed for just about anything: working too slow, talking back, arguing, anything you can think. I was also scared of the overseer, he was a cruel man, and he would do things… just makes me sick to think. I think my biggest fear was that I would never be free again. It’s hard being enslaved, ‘specially when you was free once before. Fear was just an everyday thing.”

“Going along with that, Alana, what were your hopes? Your dreams?”

“My hopes and dreams was that one day I might be free. There were other little comforts I thought about, but nothing stays with you like the hunger for freedom. To be able to go where I want, do what I want, work and get wages, these are the freedoms withheld from us. Nothing stays in the mind of a slave like freedom.”

“Alana, many say that slavery has been good for your people; that it has civilized you. Why do you think this is?”

“Because they have never seen this slavery.”

The above dialog is fictional in many regards. However, Alana was a real slave brought from Sierra Leone to Havana on the slaver Segundo Rosario. While there is no way to know if her story looked anything like the one above, this story is (in its broadest sense) somewhat typical of enslaved women. Interpret this dialog not as a single account, but as a conglomerate of what it might have been like to live the life of an enslaved woman in the sugar kingdom of Cuba.

Sources:

Prince, Mary. (2004). The History of Mary Prince: A West Indian Slave Narrative. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, Inc.

Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. (10/22/2011). African Names Database. Retrieved from 

http://www.slavevoyages.org/tast/resources/slaves.faces.

Staten, Clifford L. (2003). The History of Cuba. (pp. 23-26). Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group

Labor Divisions

Labor on the island was divided according to racial stratification and freedom status. By the late 1700s the economy of Cuba was changing. This was a transition from a market based on tobacco and leather to one focused almost purely on sugar. With this transition brought a new interest and need for African slaves.

The cost of sugar in Europe had nearly tripled since the slave revolt on St. Domingue and the elites of Cuba were preparing to reap the rewards. Much of the lands that had been previously devoted to tobacco were being changed to accommodate the new "gold mine" of sugar. By 1827, approximately 1,000 sugar mills had sprang up on the island and with their development came the need for a cheap labor source. From 1816-1820 over 100,000 African slaves were brought to Cuba. These came mostly from the Gold Coast of Africa and seemed to have served in the rigorous sugar industry. They provided the manual labor needed to make the plantations successful for their masters.

Plantation owners were often Spanish born or of direct Spanish decent. These were the elites of Cuban society comprising those who were more racially pure and financially "secure". There were many of these mills in the early development of the sugar industry on Cuba as there was little infrastructure to aid processing of the product. In fact, it is the sugar industry, which caused such infrastructural advancements to be made. With the development of sugar, these elite members of society were becoming even wealthier often spending their money on extravagant balls and cock fights. However, this stratification of labor was not indicative of the common Cuban.

There was another large group of free people on the islands. These were free Europeans and people of color. They often skilled tradesmen such as carpenters, blacksmiths, and workers and overseers for others plantations. This group also included small landowners. Labor in this class was very different from that of the elites. To survive, this class was forced to work and make a living. They did not have the extravagance afforded to the more prestigious Cubans. However, they were still not the bottom of the labor stratification. That position was reserved for the slave.

Slavery in Cuba developed with the sugar industry. This labor-intensive crop required hard, dangerous work that was delegated to forced labor. Slaves on Cuba, as well as most Caribbean islands, had few rights and were subjected to the will of their owner. They were forced to plant, cultivate, harvest, process, and pack the sugar. This was strenuous work and most all slaves were involved, young and old. Slaves had no land or property of their own and were forced to work for the sole benefit of their masters and were thus, the bottom of the labor classes on Cuba.

Labor groups developed along social classes and became rigidly defined with the birth of the sugar industry of Cuba. The Lives and roles of elites, free class, and slave laborers were vastly differentand rigidly predicted, at least for a time. 

Sources:
Staten, Clifford L. (2003). The History of Cuba. (pp. 11-31). Westport,     CT: Greenwood Publishing Group
Wright, Irene. (1916). The Early History of Cuba, 1492-1586. (pp. 5-7).     New York, NY: The Macmillan Company

Development of Racial Categories

  Race and identity developed rapidly in Cuba after the “discovery” by the Spanish. From 1492 to approximately 1774, there would be a hierarchical development, which would drastically shape the lives of those on the island.

On October 28, 1492, Christopher Columbus discovered the island of Cuba and claimed it for Spain. At this time there are rough estimates, which state there were from 50,000 to 300,000 indigenous people living on the island. However, European diseases such as smallpox, typhus, and influenza decimated this population. In fact, by 1544 there were only 7,000 living in Cuba. Of these, 660 were Spanish, 800 were slaves, and the remaining 5,500 were all that remained of Cuba’s indigenous people. These would assimilate into the Spanish culture and become part of the Casta system. 

Substantial racial categories would come with the development of slavery on the island. In 1713, the Spanish began slave trading with the South Sea Company of London. From the arrival of the Spanish through the 1700s, the main industry of Cuba would be tobacco and leather. Neither of these required a large enslaved population. However, in late 1700s, the wealthy population of Cuba began to develop sugar plantations. With these came the need for a large enslaved workforce.

In 1791, on the French colony of Saint Domingue, there was a slave revolt, which ground its sugar industry to a halt. The result was a substantial increase of sugar mills in Cuba. By 1827, there were over 1,000 sugar mills across the island and with them came an insatiable demand for a steady workforce. In response, the Spanish turned to Africa slavery. In 1774, Africans and mulattos only represented 68,000 of the 170,000 living on Cuba. This increased dramatically over the next few decades. From 1816 to 1820, over 100,000 enslaved Africans were legally imported to the island. Many more were smuggled illegally. In this time, plantation owners preferred African, male slaves to female. The common perception held that women were less productive and a liability during pregnancy. They also felt it was cheaper to buy enslaved males than to raise enslaved children. This provides some understanding for the large number of enslaved individuals entering Cuba during this era.

By this time, narrow racial classes had developed. As in most European colonies, those born in the “homeland” were atop the social stratification, in this case those born in Spain. In Cuba, they were followed by the Criollos. These were people of pure or mostly pure blood born in a Spanish colony. These were often the rich cattle ranchers, sugar planters, and tobacco farmers. Next in the social hierarchy was the small landowner, these were composed of less pure Spanish blood. In this class was also the skilled workers and tradesmen. The next class was composed of Europeans and free blacks, which worked for wages. The final stratification came with the slaves. These neither owned land or received pay. They represent the bottom of the social and racial hierarchy in Cuban society.

In Cuba, racial and societal categories were narrow and developed as a result of changing economy. From its “discovery” in 1492 until the mid 1800s, Cuba underwent dramatic shifts in its racial hierarchy. In the end, those of Spanish decent occupied the top of the social stratification. Those of less pure blood developed along the middle of the hierarchy, leaving those of African decent at the bottom of the hierarchical barrel. These racial categories would impact and tell the story of the Cuba for generations to come. 

Sources:

Riverend Julio. Tobacco Plantations in Cuba. (10/6/2011). Retrieved from http://www.cubaheritage.org/articles.asp?lID=1&artID=57

Staten, Clifford L. (2003). The History of Cuba. (pp. 11-31). Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group

Early Cuban Conflict

Conflict plays a crucial role in the history of any people. Those living on the island of Cuba are no different. Although the Cuban natives were not warlike, conflicts over slavery and with Caribs played a role in shaping the history of the island.

 

 It would be difficult to believe that the Cuban natives did not, at some point, encounter the Carib people. The Caribs were an extremely warlike tribe and are widely believed to be the cannibalistic enemy to the native Taino. The Carib people traveled by fleet of canoes from island to island, making war on the Taino people. The Carib warriors heavily favored the bow and arrow as their weapon of choice. Often when attacking Taino villages, Caribs would use flaming arrows to completely destroy the area. While there is no known written evidence, the extremely aggressive nature of the Caribs make it is easy to believe that this warlike tribe made some adversarial contact with Cuban natives.

The next major recorded conflict came with the Spanish settling the island. Soon after establishing themselves on Cuba, the Spanish sought to enslave some of the native population. Outright resistance by the Taino would be futile as their main weapons were wooden spears or darts whose tips were often fire-tempered for strength or mounted with bone. This compared to the more modern weapons of the Spanish, which often included firearms and armor. With large-scale direct confrontation a non-option, these natives chose resisted in a theoretically more passive confrontation. Cuban natives would often commit suicide rather than be taken into bondage. This method of conflict was extremely effective as it deprived Spanish of a critical moneymaking asset: human workforce. 

For whatever reason, there was a huge cultural divide between the Cuban natives and Carib people. This cultural riff would be the source of much fighting and bloodshed throughout the Caribbean islands. It is also true that the Carib people would sometimes expand to newly conquered islands. Thus, the majority of conflicts endured between the Carib and Taino people were over cultural differences and the seeking of profit.

Conflict between Europeans and Cuban natives stemmed from much of the same differences. The Spanish tended to think of the “uncivilized” Taino as beneath them. This cultural difference would lead to Spanish dehumanization of native Cubans, a trend, which would happen in most of the Caribbean. It would be naive to believe that all conflict simply came from this cultural misunderstanding. Much direct conflict came from the Spanish’s determination for profit. This is evident in their search for a free source of labor among the Taino people. While much of the conflict may have been indirect, it stemmed from cultural misunderstandings and Spanish greed.

Early Cuban conflicts against their oppressors were paramount in their history. From the defense from the warlike Caribs to the resistance of European slavery, we see a resilient spirit in the Cuban people.

Sources:

Carter, E. H., G. W. Digby, and R. N. Murray. (1959). History of the West Indian Peoples - From Earliest Times to the 17th Century. (pp. 22-44). Cheltenham: Nelson and Sons.

Emily R. Lundberg. (9/23/2011). Island Caribs Attack Tainos. Retrieved from http://www.cubaheritage.org/articles.asp?lID=1&artID=9.

Wright, Irene. (1916). The Early History of Cuba, 1492-1586. (pp. 5-7). New York, NY: The Macmillan Company