Cuban Americans in Miami this week are remembering the 65th anniversary of the Bay of Pigs invasion— the last major military attempt to topple the Communist government in Cuba.
About 1,500 Cuban exiles, with the backing of the CIA, attempted to invade the island nation at the Bay of Pigs on April 17, 1961, in an attempt to overthrow Fidel Castro’s fledgling Communist government. More than 100 of the U.S.-backed fighters either drowned or were killed in action. Another 1,200 of the fighters, known as Brigade 2506, were taken prisoner after running out of ammunition and spent about 20 months in captivity before their release was negotiated.
Today, only about 200 of the veterans remain, the youngest of whom are in their 80s. They’re hosting the grand reopening of the Bay of Pigs Brigade 2506 Museum and Library in Miami’s Little Havana neighborhood this month to coincide with the 65th anniversary of the Bay of Pigs Invasion.
Rafael Montalvo, president of the Brigade 2506 Veterans Association, said the museum will also educate visitors about the harm caused by decades of Communist dictatorship.
“The Bay of Pigs is a historical moment that defined the future of Cuba, of the United States, of Miami, and of many Latin American countries, because the failure of that intervention made communism stay in Cuba forever and change the country completely," Montalvo said.
The Cuban Revolution started in 1953 as an armed revolt, led by Castro, against the U.S.-backed dictator Fulgencio Batista. Following an early failed attack, revolutionaries reorganized as a guerrilla force, and the movement gained support among Cuban citizens dissatisfied with inequality and corruption. Batista fled the island on Jan. 1, 1959, leaving Castro to take power, establish a socialist state, nationalized foreign assets and become allies with the former Soviet Union. Nearly a quarter million Cubans had fled to the U.S. by the time of the Cuban missile crisis in October 1962.
Like most older Cuban Americans, most Brigade members have historically leaned conservative. But the group broke with a half-century tradition of not endorsing individual candidates by officially supporting U.S. President Donald Trump’s first campaign and then reaffirming that endorsement four years later.
“You have to understand that Trump, in 2016, he came here and campaigned,” Montalvo said. “And we, for the first time ever, backed a president — politically backed him. And he made certain promises to us when he was here.”
Those promises included adding new sanctions to Cuba and reversing former President Barack Obama’s policies that loosened restrictions on travel and commerce. Now they’re hoping that Trump can finally remove the current Cuban government for good, which will likely require action from the U.S. military.
Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have called for a change in Cuba’s leadership, with ongoing talks between the U.S. and Cuba in their early stages, according to Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel. A punishing U.S. blockade has led to increased blackouts, with just a single fuel delivery in the past three months.
While Montalvo sees the need for the U.S. military, he doesn't want a U.S. invasion and occupation of Cuba. The ideal situation would be a revolt by Cuban citizens with backing from the U.S., followed by American investment and infrastructure to redevelop the island.
“I don’t want to see American boots on the ground in Cuba,” Montalvo said. “I would hate to see an American soldier die because of Cuba’s freedom. I mean, we have to die ourselves before that happens.”
Montalvo said his group trusts Rubio, a Miami-born Cuban American, to guide Trump. But whatever happens, Montalvo said the current government in Cuba needs to be removed completely.
“We ask them that if they’re not going to get rid of the mafia that is in power right now, don’t do anything,” Montalvo said. “Because to make change in Cuba that is just for the photographs, like they did in Venezuela, in Cuba it’s not going to work.”
