Additional Materials

Discussion Questions

Why do you think Fidel Castro was the first leftist Prime Minister in Cuba that was able to be seen as a threat to the United States?
Had the United States succeeded in suppressing communism in both Vietnam and the Soviet Union before Fidel Castro took power, do you think the conflict would have lasted as long as it did/has? Why or why not?
Why do you think the United States underestimated Fidel Castro at first, despite their experiences with Vietnam?
Why do you think the United States failed so many times in their attempts to remove Castro from power?
Do you believe Fidel Castro should have been harsher on the United States, especially regarding economic effects? More lenient? Stayed the same? Why or why not?
Had other western countries been as invested in the halt of communism as the United States, what do you think would have been the effects? Would Cuba have been able to remain under Castro’s rule for as long as it did?
What would have been the consequences if the 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion had succeeded?
If you had been John F. Kennedy, what would you have done differently during the Cuban Missile Crisis? If you had been Nikita Khrushchev? Fidel Castro?
Do you believe the Cuban Missile Crisis would have been resolved another way, had Kennedy not made a secret deal with the Soviet Union? Why or why not?
What do you believe is the future of Cuba-U.S. relations?

Digital Resources

Blight, James G., and Lang, Janet M.. The Armageddon Letters : Kennedy, Khrushchev, Castro in the Cuban Missile Crisis. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2012. ProQuest Ebook Central.

A book, often styled in the way of a play, which tells the actions of John F. Kennedy, Fidel Castro, and Nikita Khrushchev during the Cold War.

Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Bay of Pigs invasion.” Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/event/Bay-of-Pigs-invasion.

An encyclopedic entry detailing the 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion.

Castro, Fidel. Speech. The Second Declaration of Havana. Presented at The Second Declaration of Havana, February 4, 1962. https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/mod/1962castro.asp.

One of Fidel Castro’s many impassioned speeches; in this, he rails against the colonialist actions of the United States and laments that they have become the richest country at the time, while the Latin American countries have been left to produce for them.

Historic Newsreel Footage of the Cuban Missile Crisis [Video file]. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.smithsonianmag.com/videos/category/history/historic-newsreel-footage-of-the-cuban-missi/.

An American newsreel recorded during the Cuban Missile Crisis, depicting the anger of the Cuban people and Fidel Castro, as well as the animosity of the United States and the Soviet Union towards each other.

Noa, R. (Director). (n.d.). The United States Breaks Diplomatic Relations with Cuba [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/video/the-united-states-breaks-diplomatic-relations-with-cuba-news-footage/1173923382?adppopup=true.

This is an American newsreel quickly explaining the moment the United States’ patience with the Cuban government came to an end.

Timeline: U.S.-Cuba Relations. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.cfr.org/timeline/us-cuba-relations.

An extensive timeline spanning from 1959 to 2021, offering details about how the United States and Cuba have interacted over the past 62 years.