Former Cuban President Fidel Castro was many things to many people while he was alive – a dictator, revolutionary, and an ardent Communist. Regardless if you are an apologist or a fervent enemy of Castro and his regime, we can all agree on one thing about him – he’s now dead. A death that has now been long overdue, his exit leaves a history that is ripe for the picking.
His homophobia was sometimes overlooked due to his other human rights crimes, but it radiated throughout his tyranny over Cuba.
In an interview in 1965, Castro noted that a homosexual could never do what would enable someone to become a real revolutionary:
“…Embody the condition and the requirements of conduct” that enable someone.”
This Is What Fidel Castro and His Friends Called Gay Folks
Coupled with machismo and mainstream violence, homosexuality and gayness were deemed the opposite of what it is to be a man in Castro’s Cuba. His disdain for gayness showed itself as soon as he gained power.
His regime established a campsite named Military Units to Aid Production.
Here, Castro deposited individuals and groups that he deemed undesirable – supporters of Jehovah’s Witness, as well as gay people. A resisting gay rights organization called the Mattachine Society pushed back against these type of camps, fervently protesting outside of the White House throughout Castro’s governance.
Gay People Were Disenfranchised Even after the Camps Closed
When gays weren’t in makeshift internment camps, they were publicly shamed and bullied. This was showcased by Reinaldo Arenas, a Cuban novelist who was sent to prison after being convicted of “ideological deviation.”
In one of his memoirs, he recounted his experience as a gay person in Cuba’s prison system, where he was publicly humiliated and was forced to be fed last.
There Are Parallels Between Fidel Castro and Donald Trump
Trying to uplift Cuba’s image and placate to global powers, Castro has been found saying that his revolution treated gays badly. His hollow words of sympathy don’t mean much when his citizens are restrained by a totalitarian society that severely restricts people’s ability to vote or showcase political affiliations.
His proposed support for gay rights was simply for show.
This is a similar hypocrisy shown by President-elect Donald Trump, as he’s also been found casually swaying an upside down gay flag. His facade is extraordinarily cheap since his administration can easily be deemed as one of the most homophobic, anti-human administration in the past several years.
Watch this video of Fidel Castro, and his regime for more information:
Featured Image: Screenshot Via YouTube Video.
