AP World History per. 5
Mr. Herbst
April 12, 2012
DBQ Essay
The effects of the Cuban Revolution on women’s lives and gender relations in Cuba from 1959 to 1990 include that some say women have not reached equality yet with men, women gained more opportunities for themselves, economy and politics, and also how women still had responsibility for children and home, not men. One effect of the Cuban Revolution on women was the thought that women still have not reached equality with men. Ofelia Dominguez Navarra (#1), a female Cuban socialist feminist, believes an effect of the Cuban Revolution will change the social status of women to be less patriarchal. As a Cuban feminist, she probably believed this because the revolutionaries could change the Cuban Civil Code. Fidel Castro (#5), the Cuban president, believes an effect of the Cuban Revolution on women’s gender relations is that they will still be discriminated against, but will take some more time before women have full equality. Castro probably has this point of view because his audience was women and he wanted to be realistic so they understand the effort it is going to take to stop the oppression of women. Alina Fernandez (#6), a new mother and the daughter of president Castro, believes that despite the Cuban Revolution, there was no effect change in women’s rights in the home. Being expelled by her own father, she probably believes this because she lost her future job and now must struggle on her own to support her baby. An additional document that would help see their point of views how women did not gain much would be a letter from a single mother or supporter that did not get help with her problems. This would be helpful because it would show that even after the revolution, there was not a great effect for some women in a good way, and possibly even made it a harder life to care for her kids and herself. Another effect of the Cuban Revolution on women was that women gained more