Cuba Quote by Captain Hank Bracker, "The Exciting Story of Cuba
““The Directorio Revolucionario (“DR”) existed during the mid-1950’s and it was a Cuban University students’ group in opposition to the dictator President Fulgencio Batista. It was one of the most active terrorist organizations in Havana. Although they were given orders not to attack the rank and file police officers, semantics became important, as their targets were no longer “assassinated,” but rather were “executed.” To them the term sounded more legally acceptable. However, regardless of how it is phrased, murder is murder! At 3:20 on the afternoon of March 13, 1957, fifty attackers from the “DR”, led by Carlos Gutiérrez Menoyo, attacked the Presidential Palace. Menoyo had fought in the Sahara Desert against the German forces under General Rommel during World War II. By demonstrating great courage, Carlos had been decorated and given the rank of second lieutenant in the French army and was uniquely suited for this task. Now, with workers representing labor, and rebellious students from the university, they drove up to the entrance to the Presidential Palace in delivery van #7, marked “Fast Delivery S.A.” They also had two additional cars weighted down with bombs, rifles, and automatic weapons… (Read more in the Exciting Story of Cuba)””
About This Quote
Source Book: The Exciting Story of Cuba (historical account)
The passage describes a violent revolutionary attack on Cuba’s Presidential Palace, highlighting the moral paradox of labeling murder as “execution.”
In simple terms: Revolutionary violence is framed to sound lawful.
Critically examine language used to justify violence.
Themes
Mood
Type
When to use this quote
- historical study
- political activism
- human rights advocacy
Key Concepts
Questions to Reflect On
- How does language shape perception of violent acts?
- What moral frameworks can assess revolutionary tactics?
Justifying murder can desensitize societies to brutality.