Cuban Revolution centenary revisits 1959 overthrow of Batista

On New Year's Eve 1958‑59, news reached Fortaleza that the Batista dictatorship in Cuba had fallen. The overthrow was driven by a popular insurgency that descended from the Sierra Maestra mountains, where leaders such as Fidel Castro Ruz, Camilo Cienfuegos and Ernesto "Che" Guevara organized the revolutionary forces. The article links the Cuban uprising to broader U.S. interventions in the region, noting the United Fruit Company's economic dominance and the CIA‑backed 1954 coup that removed Guatemalan President Jacobo Arbenz. It reflects on how the 1959 revolution reshaped Cuba’s political landscape and continues to influence perceptions of U.S. influence in Latin America.