Gender Roles In Cuban History

Constructions of gender throughout Cuban history have shaped Cuba into the country that it is. Both masculine and feminine constructions have occurred, with Fidel Castro’s beard as a sign of masculinity or how patriarchy before the 1930’s shaped the way that women were sexualized and controlled. In the past century, women’s roles had changed tremendously from before the revolution, during the revolution, and post-revolution. Cuban women were sexualized before the revolution, which increased tourism in Cuba. As the revolution started, the gender constructions of women changed Cuban history because they started the revolution and made up a large percentage of the top revolutionary leadership. After the Cuban revolution, women were incorporated into occupations that broke the traditional system of patriarchy in Cuba.
Between 1915 and 1930, the sexuality of women in Cuba was displayed for the whole world to see. Many of these tourists sought out the island because “Cuba evoked romance and exuded sensuousness” and believed Havana was the sexiest city in the world. Men and travel guides often described women by their beauty and erotic behavior. Basil Woon wrote about beautiful women in Havana: “At least two out of every …show more content…
Rita García, a member of the Mariana Grajales, said: “The women asked, ‘You fought? You shot?’ And when we said, ‘yes,’ many of them embraced us, crying.” This was one of the greatest moments for women in Cuba because they knew that women played a huge part in the fall of the Batista regime. Women were given rights that would not have been handed to them if they were not in the middle of a revolution. These women of the Cuban Revolution realized that they could be more than homemakers and that they were capable of so much more. The revolution allowed them to experience a less patriarchal Cuba and one step closer to