A Nation for All: Race, Inequality, and Politics in Twentieth-Century Cuba (Envisioning Cuba)

After thirty years of anticolonial struggle against Spain and four years of military occupation by the United States, Cuba formally became an independent republic in 1902. The nationalist coalition that fought for Cuba's freedom, a movement in which blacks and mulattoes were well represented, had envisioned an egalitarian and inclusive country—a nation for all, as José Mart­ described it. But did the Cuban republic, and later the Cuban revolution, live up to these expectations? Tracing the formation and reformulation of nationalist ideologies, government policies, and different forms of social and political mobilization in republican and postrevolutionary Cuba, Alejandro de la Fuente explores the opportunities and limitations that Afro-Cubans experienced in such areas as job access, education, and political representation. Challenging assumptions of both underlying racism and racial democracy, he contends that racism and antiracism coexisted within Cuban nationalism and, in turn, Cuban society. This coexistence has persisted to this day, despite significant efforts by the revolutionary government to improve the lot of the poor and build a nation that was truly for all. After thirty years of anticolonial struggle against Spain and four years of military occupation by the United States, Cuba formally became an independent republic in 1902. The nationalist coalition that fought for Cuba's freedom, a movement in which blacks and mulattoes were well represented, had envisioned an egalitarian and inclusive country-a nation for all, as Josace Martei described it. But did the Cuban republic, and later the Cuban revolution, live up to these expectations? Tracing the formation and reformulation of nationalist ideologies, government policies, and different forms of social and political mobilization in republican and postrevolutionary Cuba, Alejandro de la Fuente explores the opportunities and limitations that Afro-Cubans experienced in such areas as job access, education, and political representation. Challenging assumptions of both underlying racism and racial democracy, he contends that racism and antiracism coexisted within Cuban nationalism and, in turn, Cuban society. This coexistence has persisted to this day, despite significant efforts by the revolutionary government to improve the lot of the poor and build a nation that was truly for all. Contents......Page 8 Acknowledgments......Page 10 Abbreviations......Page 14 Introduction......Page 18 PART I: The First Republic, 1902–1933......Page 38 1 Racial Order or Racial Democracy?: Race and the Contending Notions of Cubanidad......Page 40 2 Electoral Politics......Page 71 PART II: Inequality, 1900–1950s......Page 114 3 The Labor Market......Page 116 4 Education and Mobility......Page 155 PART III: The Second Republic, 1933–1958......Page 190 5 A New Cuba?......Page 192 6 State and Racial Equality......Page 227 PART IV: Socialism, 1959–1990s......Page 274 7 Building a Nation for All......Page 276 8 The Special Period......Page 334 Epilogue......Page 352 Notes......Page 358 Bibliography......Page 432 B......Page 454 C......Page 455 D......Page 456 F......Page 457 H......Page 458 M......Page 459 O......Page 461 P......Page 462 S......Page 463 V......Page 465 Z......Page 466 Pt. I. The First Republic, 1902-1933. 1. Racial Order Or Racial Democracy?: Race And The Contending Notions Of Cubanidad. 2. Electoral Politics -- Pt. Ii. Inequality; 1900-1950s. 3. The Labor Market. 4. Education And Mobility -- Pt. Iii. The Second Republic, 1933-1958. 5. A New Cuba? 6. State And Racial Equality -- Pt. Iv. Socialism, 1959-1990s. 7. Building A Nation For All. 8. The Special Period. Alejandro De La Fuente. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [415]-436) And Index. Tracing the formation of nationalist ideologies, government policies, and different forms of social and political mobilization in twentieth-century Cuba, Fuente explores the opportunities and limitations that Afro-Cubans experienced in such areas as job access, education, and political representation Cuba and Cubanness were represented in vastly different ways in 1899, when the defeated Spain had to relinquish sovereignty over its Caribbean colony.