Beginning of Essay
To understand the that exists today, one must understand the history of the island, and of its people. American involvement began long before the Bay of Pigs and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Yet it seems that American opinion about Cuba is shaped by these two eve ....

Middle of Essay
.... Yara declared a revolt against Spain beginning the “Ten Years War.” The Pact of Zanjon ended the war in 1878 with the promise of reforms for the country. On September 5, 1879. Antonio Maceo distributed "The Kingston Proclamation," arguing the Spain had not kept its promises. "instead of giving Cubans the opportunity to participate in the direction of their government, Spaniards have been pouring into the island to man political posts, pushing the rightful representatives of the people to one side; they are guided only by the interests of their pockets and that of the Peninsula…" On October 7, 1886 slavery was terminated in Cuba bec ....