Comrade of the Revolution: Selected Speeches of Fidel Castro
Published by 1804 Books, 2022
“Fidel’s extraordinary vision showed us that there is no possible revolution without political education.”
New pocket size taster book of speeches between 1967-2005 with foreword by Miami 5 Fernando Gonzalez Llort.
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Book review
Comrade of the Revolution: Selected Speeches of Fidel Castro
1804 Books, 2022
Comrade of the Revolution, edited by Monolo De Santos and Vijay Prashad introduces Fidel Castro as ‘The Conscience of the Third World’ stating “You cannot kill ideas. Fidel for the third world, was not merely another leader. He was the mirror of its aspirations. That mirror will never be shattered.”
For over 42 years he made adept use of TV and radio to both communicate and educate Cubans about the process they were embarking on – the creation of a socialist society.
The editors identify two broad lessons from his speeches. Firstly, revolutions are not events but processes that will produce triumphs but also setbacks and even defeats. Secondly, these defeats are not a permanent condition and if understood clearly and met with discipline they will create new possibilities.
Fidel understood change was never going to happen spontaneously and would only result from the conscious efforts of the masses. Their consent was critical hence his emphasis on making his speeches a lesson, raising consciousness with a clear exposition of analysis, policy, and goals. The battle of ideas did not belong to one particular era and his speeches offer lessons in political and revolutionary methods for all times.
This book is a taster covering just seven out of thousands of speeches delivered at various moments from 1967 to 2005. It opens with the moving ‘Can Ideas be Killed’ given at the memorial ceremony of Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara; ‘Turning Setbacks into Victories’ is about the 1970 sugar harvest; ‘When an Energetic People Cry, Injustice Trembles’ was given at the 1976 memorial for the 73 victims of the terrorist bombing of a Cubana plane in flight; in 1989 Fidel foresaw the fall of the Soviet Union ‘Even if the USSR were to Disappear, We Would Continue to Resist’; ‘Our Greatest Internationalist Mission is to Save Socialism in Cuba’ was given on the 30th anniversary of the Committees for the Defence of the Revolution (CDRs); in 1993 ‘Defeating Neoliberalism will allow for Hope in the Future’ exposes the total inhumanity of the neoliberal era; and finally from 2005 he asks ‘Can a Revolutionary Process be Reversed?’ concluding “This revolution can destroy itself, but they can never destroy us. Only we can destroy ourselves and it would be our fault.”
Fidel’s strength was his clarity, his ability to hold an audience and take them with him, ensuring they understood the extraordinary challenges Cuba and the world faced whilst always articulating a way forward.
Fernando Gonzalez Llort who spent 15 years in US jails for defending Cuba from USA-based terrorist attacks sums that up in the foreword:
“Whilst in prison, I always considered Fidel’s speeches as an inexhaustible source of knowledge and guidance…. With his permanent vigilance for the present and future of our people, Fidel played a notable role as a popular educator in history. His extraordinary vision showed us that there is no possible revolution without political education.”
A great introduction to this excellent book.
Bob Oram for CubaSi Summer 2022
