Militant Roots: The Anti-Fascist Left in the Caribbean Basin, 1945-1954

Abstract

This article examines the birth of a militant left in the Caribbean Basin before the Cuban Revolution. Following the Second World War, various anti-dictatorial exiles tapped into anti-fascist ideals and networked with likeminded allies and influential democratic leaders. This Legión Caribe threatened the regimes of the Dominican Republic’s Rafael Trujillo, Nicaragua’s Anastasio Somoza, Honduras’s Tiburcio Carías, and others. From the Costa Rican Civil War through the Guatemalan Revolution, the Legión waged a regional battle over democracy and dictatorship while contributing to the rise of Fidel Castro.