Bay of Imperialistic Pigs: Che Guevara’s Fight Against Imperialism Political pressures between Cuba and the United States were rampant in the 1960s. On April 17, 1961, John F. Kennedy launched the Bay of Pigs Invasion, an attack on Cuba to overthrow Fidel Castro and ultimately, stop communism from spreading in Cuba. 1400 Cuban exiles were ordered to attack two Cuban air bases in what is known today as a “botched” invasion on the United States’ behalf (“The Bay of Pigs”). On March 28, 1961, just twenty days before the failed invasion, Che Guevara spoke in front of sugar workers in Santa Clara about Cuba’s role in the Cold War. In his speech, “Mobilizing the Masses for the Invasion,” Guevara attempts to remind Cuba’s concerned working class …show more content…
In the beginning of the speech, Guevara proclaims “This tiny champion of the Caribbean and the immense imperialist hyena - are face to face and aware that one of them is going to end up dead in the fight.” Guevara juxtaposes Cuba and America by using contrasting terms such as “champion” and “hyena” in order to invigorate the audience with pride for their country and hatred for the enemy, which ultimately leads to a heightened drive for overthrowing America’s imperialist rule in Cuba because of their pride. In addition, the parallel between America and a hyena suggests that like a hyena, America is constantly looking for its smaller and defenseless prey to feed off of; the comparison enables the audience to clearly see how America is in the wrong for executing their plan to overthrow smaller countries to their benefit. Guevara then declares, “The victory of the Cuban Revolution will be a tangible demonstration before all the Americas that peoples are capable of rising up, that they can rise up by themselves right under the very fangs of the monster.” The comparison of hero versus villain evokes bellicosity from this group of working class citizens by motivating them into continuing the fight against American imperialism in Cuba. Guevara further insinuates that Cuba is committed to stopping Imperialism from conquering the country in order to prove their capability of being independent by presenting an incentive for the audience-- recognition for their