The life of Juan Almeida

Juan Almeida passed away on 11 September. He was 82. Almeida, an Afro-Cuban, was the only black to hold the title ‘Revolutionary Commander’. He was the second person after Che Guevara to be elevated the this rank, and forever remained the revolution’s ‘Number Three’, behind Fidel and Raul Castro. In his homage to Almeida, Fidel Castro described him as a ‘companion of exemplary conduct in the course of over 50 years of heroic and triumphant resistance’. Almeida, the son of a labourer, was part of the revolution right from the beginning. He was part of the attack on the Moncada army barracks in Santiago, on the 26th of July 1953, as well as all the other battles that led to the eventual triumph by Castro’s forces. Facing the onslaught of Batista’s superior troops, he is credited with the famous battle cry, ‘nobody here is going to surrender!’ He was a member of the new Cuban Communist Party’s Politburo at its inception in 1965. H.E. Llusif Sadin Tassé, Cuba’s ambassador to Senegal, spoke to Pambazuka News about the life of this hero.

Fidel Castro reflected that he had no idea just how much pain Almeida’s passing would cause the Cuban people. Almeida, who passed away on 11 September, is more than just an icon. He is part and parcel of the country’s history, its revolution, and all that gave his life meaning.

Almeida was the second of twelve children. At a very young age he was forced to join his mason father to make ends meet. In 1952 when Batista staged his coup d’Etat, he joined the progressive voices, especially the students, who took up arms. His political conscience made him keenly aware that Cuban democracy was under threat, and it was only through armed conflict that it could be safeguarded. It was at this point that Almeida joined the revolutionary forces. He took part in the assault on the Moncada army barracks on 1952. The ill-fated assault landed him in prison, along with Fidel, Raul and a number of other key revolutionaries.

Under public pressure, a general amnesty was declared, and Almeida was one of those who were exiled to Mexico. There, the core revolutionary group formed, with the arrival of Che Guevarra and others. He remained very close to Fidel, even after they returned to Cuba. He was aboard the Granma, and on the frontline of all subsequent battles leading up to the fall of Havana in 1959.

His revolutionary pedigree does not however detract from another facet of this man – Almeida the poet, writer and artist. His works chronicled the nexus moments of the revolution, from a first-person perspective. Almeida the writer and revolutionary was one of only three people to achieve the rank of commander in the course of the Sierra war. He ranked third behind Che and Raul.

He owed this distinction to his extraordinary qualities. As Fidel stated, he was one of those fighters who was always ready to fight with one, and for one, to the death. Every time he went into combat he was ready to die. He was a living example. He is credited with the battle cry ‘nobody here is going to surrender!’ He uttered this when his fellow fighters, surrounded and outnumbered by Batista’s troops, were losing hope.

Almeida carried all his battle glory with unbelievable humility. He headed the veterans’ association, all the while remaining an artist and a creator of beauty. A number of songs he composed won international accolades. One of these songs, La Lupita, which went on to become a Cuban classic, was composed aboard the Granma. It is a sad song of loss and separation, and it has been said that Almeida was singing of a lost love. In reality Lupita was about all the friends and loved ones that the revolutionaries left behind on their way to the battlefront.

After the triumphant revolution, all his prestigious appointments did not prevent him for running the association for veterans of the Cuban revolution. The association represented not only those who fought in Cuba, but also on other fronts like Angola and elsewhere. He forged strong links with the great leaders of the Luso-African revolutions.

As the only Afro-Cuban to hold the title of Revolutionary Commander, Almeida’s dedication over-shadowed the race issue. He was dedicated to the fight against poverty and social injustices, which were undoubtedly even starker when one was black and poor in Cuba at the time. His dedication is thus a reflection of his sensitivity towards others and to their suffering.

Almeida asked to be buried at the Mausoleum at Santiago de Cuba in Oriente, built in memory of those members of the 3rd front that he led. He lies there among his fellow combatants, after all the military honours according him, and the homage of the country’s population

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* His Excellency Llusif Sadin Tassé is Cuba’s ambassador to Senegal. His reflections were recorded by Tidiane Kassé, editor of Pambazuka News, French Edition.
* Translated by Josh Ogada
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