September 18 - Fidel Castro Arrives in New York

This Day in History: 18 September 2020

 

18 September 1960

 

60 years ago, today, Fidel Castro arrived in New York, acting as the head of the Cuban delegation to the United Nations. His visit stirred admiration and indignation from various groups within the American society. Castro's stay at the Theresa Hotel in Harlem was the first event that sparked public surprise, which eventually climaxed due to his speech to the United Nations on September 26. While staying at the hotel, he met with many African American leaders, including Malcolm X and Langston Hughes. Over a week later, he would deliver an attack on American 'aggression' and 'imperialism' in front of the United Nations, that lasted for over four hours.

 

Castro's visit marked the final breaking point in relations between the United States and Cuba. The next year, the Eisenhower administration severed all diplomatic relations with Cuba, and shortly afterwards, President John F. Kennedy ordered the Bay of Pigs invasion, which was ultimately a failure. Castro's power in Cuba was solidified by his victory in the invasion. For over four decades, he remained the undisputed leader of Cuba's communist government, despite continued strained relations between the United States. Castro officially stepped down in February 2008, and died in 2016, at the age of 90.

 

Want to find out more about Fidel Castro's visit to the UN? Click here for more information, or here for more about his life.

Some Easter Reading

The Easter Holidays are finally here. Nonsuch HP will go a little quiet over the next few weeks, but will add a few links to this post if there are any political and historical stories that may be of interest.

Here are a few to get us started:

Malcolm X - A new biography has been published about him. This article explores the man behind the myth.

Who was Britain's greatest ever general? The National Army Museum has conducted a poll and came up with this shortlist: Oliver Cromwell, Douglas Haig, Bill Slim, the Duke of Marlborough and the Duke of Wellington. Read more about them in this article for the Today programme.

Is the British Empire to blame for many of the world's problems? David Cameron seemed to suggest so in his recent speech in Pakistan, but not everyone would agree. Here are two historians' opposing views.

LOL! The famous internet acronym has been added to the Oxford Dictionary, but did you know it is nearly 30 years old, and the French version is "mdr"? (mort de rir - died of laughing - the Thai version is 555, because 5 in Thai is pronounced ha!) More stuff like this here.

That's enough to get you going. If you spot anything else that's interesting, please add a comment below. Happy Easter everyone