January 1, 1959 - Fidel Castro and his “right hand
man” Che Guevara take Cuba from Fulgencio
Batista.
Nationalizes factories and plantations
May 1959 First Agrarian Reform Law: limits the
Size of land holdings and forbids foreign
land ownership.
Creates friction with American companies
and mafia doing business in Cuba.
Builds relationship with USSR and begins buying
Oil.
US places embargo on Cuban goods
Unsuccessful action by a CIA-trained
force of Cuban exiles to invade
southern Cuba, with support and
encouragement from the U.S.
government
Purpose
Attempt to overthrow the Cuban
government of Fidel Castro.

In April 1960, the CIA began to recruit antiCastro Cuban exiles in the Miami area. Until
July 1960, assessment and training was carried
out on Useppa Island and at various other
facilities in South Florida, such as Homestead
AFB.

The invasion was launched in April 1961, less
than three months after John F. Kennedy
assumed the presidency in the United States.

The Cuban armed forces, trained and equipped
by Eastern Bloc nations, defeated the invading
combatants within three days.

On 19 April 1961, at least seven Cubans plus
two CIA-hired US citizens (Angus K. McNair
and Howard F. Anderson) were executed in
Pinar del Rio province, after a two-day trial.

Groupthink is a psychological phenomenon
that occurs within groups of people. It is the
mode of thinking that happens when the desire
for harmony in a decision-making group
overrides a realistic appraisal of alternatives.




-minimize conflict
-reach a consensus
-decision without critical evaluation of
alternative ideas or
viewpoints.


Eventually Schlesinger minimized his own
doubts, that is, he performed self-censorship.
The Kennedy team stereotyped Castro and the
Cubans by failing to question the CIA about its
many assumptions:



ineffectiveness of Castro's air force
weakness of Castro's army
inability of Castro to quell internal uprisings.

The failed invasion severely embarrassed the
Kennedy Administration, and made Castro
wary of future US intervention in Cuba. On 21
April, in a State Department press conference,
President Kennedy said: "There's an old saying
that victory has a hundred fathers and defeat is
an orphan... What matters is only one fact, I am
the responsible officer of the government."
Who is shown
in the
cartoon?
What is in his
mouth?
What is the
point of
drawing the
cigar as if it is
exploding?



Castro intensified his relations with the Soviet
Union by accepting further economic and
military aid.
Khrushchev wanted to place nuclear missiles in
Cuba as a response to U.S. Jupiter missiles
being in Turkey
Kennedy demanded the removal of the missiles
with orders for the U.S. Navy to search any
vessels headed for the island.
Spy plane captures building of nuclear missile base in
Cuba


You are a presidential advisor to Kennedy. You
must decide whether the president should be
concerned about Soviet missiles and launch
pads in Cuba. What do you advise the
president to do? Kennedy has asked you to
brainstorm possible U.S. responses to the
Soviet missile threat in Cuba. What will you
include on your list?
Look at your briefing and answer on your
paper
Defense department advisor is discussing the Soviet offensive missile
buildup in Cuba.
Four major installations have been sighted.


You are a member of the Executive Committee,
known as ExCom, a group of Kennedy’s closest
advisors gathered to help him work through
this crisis. The president has asked you to
assess these five possible responses. How
would you prioritize these possible responses?
What are the positive and negative aspects of
each?
Read the briefing and answer on your paper
Map of the naval blockade of Cuba
Blockade was set up 500 miles off the coast of Cuba in international
waters.


You are a member of ExCom. Respond to the
four situations the president might face,
keeping in mind his goals for the crisis as
outlined in Top Secret Briefing C. Then offer
your recommendation for what the president
should do now.
Read the briefing and answer on your paper



After days of secret communications
between Khrushchev, Kennedy, and their
agents, Khrushchev agreed to remove the
missiles in exchange for the U.S.’s public
agreement not to invade Cuba
Kennedy admin. also agreed to secretly
remove our missiles from Turkey
The U.S. was able to persuade the OAS to
end diplomatic relations with Cuba, in
response to Castro’s “shameful” actions



Civil liberties have been whittled away – labor
unions lost the right to strike, independent
newspapers shut down, and religious
institutions harassed
Increased literacy to 98%, has universal health
care, opened over 10,000 new schools
Approx. 120,000 Cubans have left their
homeland for sanctuary in the U.S.