TELESUR
Fidel Castro jokes with Muhammad Ali PHOTO/Hazel Hankin
Fidel Castro made many enemies when he set out to free Cuba from the ironclad rule of Batista and U.S. imperialism. But he also made a lot of friends.
Fidel Castro made many enemies when he set out to free Cuba from the ironclad rule of Batista and U.S. imperialism.
But he also made a lot of friends—among them some of the world’s leading thinkers, activists and sporting icons.
In celebration of Fidel’s 90th birthday, teleSUR looks at these valuable friendships—some more unlikely than others—and what they say about the revolutionary leader.
Nelson Mandela
Fidel Castro and South African leader Nelson Mandela enjoyed a long and close relationship, forged by a joint struggle against inequality and oppression.
When Mandela began a South African resistance militia to end racial oppression he looked to the Cuban Revolution for inspiration.
In his autobiography “Long Walk to Freedom,” South Africa’s iconic leader described how the philosophy and success of the Cuban Revolution influenced his politics and ideology.
“I read the report of Blas Roca, the general secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba, about their years as an illegal organization during the Batista regime,” he wrote. “I read works by and about Che Guevara, Mao Tse-tung, Fidel Castro.”
“Any and every source was of interest to me.”
After Mandela was released from prison in 1990, the two leaders grew closer.
Mandela traveled to Cuba to meet his friend in person and thank him for sending soldiers to Angola during the 1970s and 1980s to fight apartheid regimes.
“We have come here today recognizing our great debt to the Cuban people. What other country has such a history of selfless behavior as Cuba has shown for the people of Africa?” he said in his speech.
In 1994, Mandela was elected the first Black president of South Africa—an historic moment marking the end of over 40 years of segregation, oppression and discrimination.
Fidel was there to cheer him on.
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