Socialism in Cuba: Debate and Socialist Renewal for the Twenty-First Century

ABSTRACT

Following the popular triumph of the Cuban Revolution in 1959, and declaration of its socialist character in 1961, a form of Cuban socialism has been in power. The historical trajectory of Cuban socialism in power has moved through periods of fierce independence and debate about a particular Cuban model of socialism, close and disciplined political and economic alignment with the former Soviet Union, and renewed periods of critical debate following its collapse. A constitutional commitment to building Cuban socialism was ratified in 1976, and continues in 2018, with no so-called “transition” to capitalism following the collapse of “historical socialism.” This article focuses on approaches of the Cuban state toward popular discussion and debate, and the potential for popular debate to support Cuban socialism and its legitimacy in power. Following an overview of some key historical events and cycles related to popular debate about Cuban socialism, the paper returns to contemporary events, including the 2018 presidential and National Assembly elections. The paper concludes by arguing that there are indications of expanded debate within Cuba, and a reconsideration of the role of official media in this debate, with the potential to contribute both to the ongoing development of Cuban socialism, and more broadly to debate about socialism in the twenty-first century.

KEYWORDS:

• Cuba
• twenty-first century socialism
• debate
• media
• Miguel Díaz-Canel

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on Contributor

Tom G. Griffiths is an associate professor in comparative and international education at the University of Newcastle, Australia. His research is focused on the application of world-systems analysis as a framework for understanding systems of mass education and their potential contribution to the transformation of the capitalist world-system and advance of a socialist alternative. His work in relation to Cuba and Venezuela has been published in international journals, and recent volumes include: Logics of Socialist Education: Engaging with Crisis, Insecurity and Uncertainty (2013, Springer), Education in for Socialism: Historical, Current and Future Perspectives (2015, Routledge), and Mass Education, Global Capital, and the World: The Theoretical Lenses of István Mészáros and Immanuel Wallerstein (2013, Palgrave).

ORCID

Tom G. Griffiths http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7820-6787

Notes

1. Some key volumes sympathetic to the Cuban Revolution include: August (2013), Lambie (2010), Kapcia (2009), and Gott (2005). Some work critical of the Revolution includes: Eckstein (1994), Pérez-Stable (1993).

2. For a leftist critique presenting Cuba as a form of state capitalism see Farber (2011).

3. There is limited literature about these events. The protest was said to have been sparked by rumours of free passage to the United States, and was arguably addressed by the Cuban state when, in the weeks following the protest, publicly declared it would not stop Cubans from leaving the island, leading to the Balsero phenomenon in which, according to Cuesta (2017), some 35,000 Cubans emigrated to the United States on home-made rafts, exporting dissent.

4. Marrón here is referring to Fidel Castro personally meeting protestors in 1994, his arrival leading some, according to García (2017), to switch from chanting “Down with Fidel” and “Freedom” to “Long Live Fidel.” See: https://kokacub.wordpress.com/2016/06/30/caliente-intervencion-en-el-vi-pleno-nacional-de-la-upec-cuba/.

5. See: https://kokacub.wordpress.com/2016/06/30/caliente-intervencion-en-el-vi-pleno-nacional-de-la-upec-cuba/.

6. Fifty-three issues of Pensamiento Crítico were produced between February 1967 and June 1971 (see: http://www.filosofia.org/rev/pcritico.html). Martínez Heredia passed away in La Habana in 2018.

7. Bengelsdorf cites articles questioning Soviet financial support and aid for Cuba, and supporting the concept of a multi-party political system (Bengelsdorf 1994, 149). Azicri, citing Katherine Ellison, adds that reports in the Soviet press criticised Cuba's “rectification of errors and negative tendencies,” and presented “a more critical portrait of Cuba” (Azicri 1992, 40).

8. Terms like these are difficult to translate, hence the Spanish word is used. While the term “promotionism” might make some sense for promocionismo, the word facilismo is an invented term based on the Spanish word for easy (fácil). Used in this context, it simply refers to the practice of making exams too easy for students, to ensure that they all pass.

9. See: http://www.temas.cult.cu/nosotros.

10. See: http://www.cfv.org.cu/publicaciones/pub2000.htm#01milenio. The Centro Felix Varela and its work in other spheres continues, following this prohibition, but founding Director Juan Antonio Blanco left Cuba in 1997.

11. See: http://hdr.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/CUB, and for Cuban reporting on its HDI results see Cuberlo (2016).

12. According to Domínguez (2012), the favourable trade with Venezuela allowed Cuba to defer internal economic, market-based reforms. Subsequent political setbacks, notably the post-Chávez pressures that the Bolivarian Revolution has experienced impacting on trade with Cuba, saw Raul Castro re-emphasise a programme of economic reforms (see for example Castro 2016). Most recently, the landslide election of Andrés Manuel López Obrador in Mexico appeared to reinvigorate leftist politics in the region.

13. Pantoja's blog continues to be published at: www.verdadecuba.blogspot.com.au.

14. See for example: http://www.granma.cu/elecciones-en-cuba-2017-2018/2018-04-19/miguel-diaz-canel-asumo-la-responsabilidad-con-la-conviccion-de-que-todos-los-revolucionarios-seremos-fieles-a-fidel-y-a-raul-19-04-2018-10-04-30, and for some initial official insights into the new Assembly and Council of Ministers see: http://www.granma.cu/elecciones-en-cuba-2017-2018/2018-04-19/minuto-a-minuto-la-continuidad-de-la-revolucion-con-un-nuevo-consejo-de-estado-en-cuba.

15. See for example: http://www.cubadebate.cu/noticias/2018/03/11/miguel-diaz-canel-aqui-construimos-una-relacion-de-gobierno-y-pueblo/#.Wq73OmZL2f5 and http://www.granma.cu/cuba/2018-03-11/minuto-a-minuto-cuba-en-elecciones-generales-ii?page=2.

16. See: https://oncubamagazine.com.

17. See: www.granma.cu, www.trabajadores.cu, www.juventudrebelde.cu, and www.cubadebate.cu respectively.

18. For detail see: https://www.idea.int/data-tools/question-countries-view/521/88/ctr.