Gusano (slur)

''Gusano'' ( worm, fem. ''gusana'') is the Spanish language term for "worm". It is a name first given to Cuban counter-revolutionaries after 1959, and then to all who opposed the government of Fidel Castro, for whatever political motivation. The word was used as early as 1960 as a name devised by Fidel Castro to refer to his opponents within Cuba.

The implications of the name "gusano" have been multifacted and debated in various online publications. It has been argued in publications like '' Miscellany News'' and ''Latino Rebels'' that the term is more than just a political insult, it is also an ethnic slur against Cuban Americans and Cubans in general, when used by those sympathetic to the Cuban government to generally insult Cuban exiles and their descendants. It has also been argued by the publication ''Green Left'' that the term is simply a political term with no generalizing ethnic connotations, that is aimed specifically at Cuban counter-revolutionaries. Historian Himilce Novas has commented that the term "gusano" has at times been used as both a political insult and an ethnic slur, and that it has also been used as a prideful term by Cuban Americans themselves.

Origins

Cuba experienced several waves of emigration after the revolution, with political dissidents and wealthy Cubans leaving in the first waves during the 1960s. By 1962, over 200,000 had already left the country. The number increased to 500,000 by the beginning of 1969. During the 1990s, many poorer Cubans left due to economic stagnation, especially following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Out of these exiles, the first waves of exiles in the 1960s first bore the term ''gusano''. By the 1960s and 1970s, Castro and his supporters had widely adopted the term in speeches and discussion to refer to Cubans that have fled the country, as well as the Cubans that applied to leave. The term supposedly originated in a 1961 speech that Castro gave where he discussed "shaking the rotten tree, and the ''gusanos'' will drop out", in reference to the counter-revolutionaries. Many chants would evolve from the phrase, such as "Con saya o pantalón, ''gusanos'' al paredón." (If wearing skirts or if wearing pants, ''gusanos'' ill turntowards the wall o be executed.

During the first wave of exodus from Cuba, reports came out from the Havana Airport stated that insults towards ''gusanos'' were being blared from the loudspeakers by airport officials.

To a lesser extent, many Cubans who stayed in the country, but were against the revolution, adopted the label as a badge of honor (or a symbol of oppression), referring to themselves as ''gusano'' or ''gusana'' to state their dissatisfaction with the Castro regime. Despite that fact, many pieces of Cuban propaganda contained imagery of the ''gusano'' and the desire to crush anti-revolutionaries. In response, anti-revolutionaries began distributing "gusano leaflets" with political cartoons involving worms. Throughout the years of Cuban exile, many alleged raids and attacks by defectors from Cuba, according to the AP, were utilized by Castro in propaganda to further strengthen their position as an enemy of the current Government. Throughout the 1960s, reports came out of the Cuban government encouraging public attacks of people branded with the label.

Usage in post-revolution Cuba

In the 1960s, the Cuban state-run newspaper, Revolución, had a daily column which featured political cartoons that featured drawings of worms, paired with a list of activities of Cubans in exile. In response, many self-identified ''gusanos'' bought and sold keyrings with worms on them to demonstrate pride in the label.

The military fort, Castillo del Príncipe, was used in the 1960s to house political prisoners of Castro that had been captured. Their wives would frequent the establishment in hopes to see their husbands and sons, and due to the large amount of anti-revolutionary women loitering around, the prison became colloquially known as ''La Gusaneria''.

By 1961, several thousand Cubans were employed at The United States Guantanamo Bay Naval Base. They were referred to as ''gusano''s by the public.

The term was also prevalent in hate crimes against anti-revolutionary Cubans. In September or October 1961, over the course of a week, 12 deceased bodies were discovered over Havana

HOME


Content is Copyleft
Website design, code, and AI is Copyrighted (c) 2014-2017 by Stephen Payne


Consider donating to Wikimedia



As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases