During an interview on Monday’s edition of SiriusXM’s “Karen Hunter Show,” Representative Keith Ellison (D-MN), who is a candidate for DNC Chair stated that Fidel Castro “confronted people with a lot of power on behalf of people that didn’t have any.” And while Castro “probably” was “harsh” and “dictatorial” his legacy is “mixed” and saying that he’s “all bad,” is “all wrong.”
Ellison said, “Well, here’s the thing about Fidel Castro, he was a revolutionary leader who confronted a system of government that excluded everybody except the military and the moneyed rich. And because he took them on, defeated them, and then set the country up in a way where — did he use harsh dictatorial tactics? Yeah, probably he did — but, did he also stand up for peace and freedom in Africa? Absolutely. I mean, his Cuban forces took on the South African apartheid military forces and defeated them. And, was — actually sent — deployed doctors anywhere from Chernobyl, to all over Africa, wherever people were sick, he sent those doctors there, made medical education very available, made medicine available. And so, if you look at his legacy, what — you have to say that he confronted people with a lot of power on behalf of people that didn’t have any. But he also did jail people who were political critics of his, he did also not allow total and free speech. And so, I think it’s a mixed bag. But for anybody to say that he was all bad, that’s all wrong.”
(h/t RCP)
Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett
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