IV 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 868 

Condemning the comments of Senator and Democratic Socialist Presidential 

candidate, Bernie Sanders (I–VT), disregarding the history of systemic 

human rights abuses, forced indoctrination, and authoritarian actions 

of the literacy and education policies of the Communist Castro dictatorship in Cuba. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 27, 2020 

Mr. DIAZ-BALART (for himself, Ms. CHENEY, Mr. MCCAUL, Mr. WALTZ, Mr. 

GONZALEZ of Ohio, Mr. SCALISE, Miss GONZA ́LEZ-COLO ́N of Puerto Rico, 

Ms. SHALALA, and Ms. MUCARSEL-POWELL) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Condemning the comments of Senator and Democratic Socialist Presidential candidate, Bernie Sanders (I–VT), 

disregarding the history of systemic human rights 

abuses, forced indoctrination, and authoritarian actions 

of the literacy and education policies of the Communist 

Castro dictatorship in Cuba. 

Whereas, on February 23, 2020, during a ‘‘60 Minutes’’ 

interview aired on CBS, Senator Bernie Sanders refused 

to condemn the Communist dictatorship of Fidel Castro 

in Cuba outright and expressed support for the literacy 

and education policies of the dictatorship; 


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•HRES 868 IH 

Whereas, on February 24, 2020, during a televised town hall 

in Charleston, South Carolina, Senator Bernie Sanders 

defended his remarks praising the literacy and education 

policies of the Castro dictatorship in Cuba; 

Whereas, on February 25, 2020, during the Democratic Presidential debate in Charleston, South Carolina, Senator 

Bernie Sanders further stated: ‘‘Cuba made progress on 

education’’ and ‘‘when dictatorships, whether it is the 

Chinese or the Cubans do something good, you acknowledge that’’; 

Whereas the literacy and education policy of the tyrannical 

Castro dictatorship served to indoctrinate the Cuban people with Marxist-Communist ideology and anti-United 

States sentiment; 

Whereas the objective of the Castro regime’s literacy and 

education policies was to promote loyalty and reverence 

for Fidel Castro above all else; 

Whereas Fidel Castro and the Communist Party of Cuba 

blocked access to independent sources of information and 

imposed outright censorship of books, libraries, and educational sources; 

Whereas Cubans who resisted Communist indoctrination by 

Fidel Castro and his regime risked human rights abuses 

including violence, imprisonment, and execution; 

Whereas most Cubans indoctrinated by the regime’s education system were forced to work for the state; 

Whereas the revolution led by Fidel Castro in Cuba in 1959 

started 60 years of an ongoing dictatorship, systemic 

human rights abuses, and a lack of basic freedoms of 

press, religion, assembly, and association that continue to 


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•HRES 868 IH 

this day under the Communist oppression of Raul Castro 

and his puppet, Miguel Diaz-Canel; 

Whereas by the early 1960’s Fidel Castro held as many as 

60,000 political prisoners; 

Whereas killings ordered by Fidel Castro are estimated to be 

as high as 17,000; 

Whereas over 1,000,000 Cubans were forced to flee their 

homeland and risked their lives to escape the Castro dictatorship; 

Whereas prior to the Castro regime, from 1953 to 1958, according to professor emeritus at the University of Pittsburgh Carmelo Mesa-Lago, Cuba’s infant mortality rate 

was the lowest in the region; 

Whereas a State Department report, ‘‘Zenith and Eclipse: A 

Comparative Look at Socio-Economic Conditions in PreCastro and Present Day Cuba’’, indicated that in 1957 

Cuba had an infant mortality rate of 32 per 1,000 births, 

the lowest in Latin America and the 13th lowest in the 

world; 

Whereas prior to Castro’s Communists seizing power, Cuba 

led virtually all countries in Latin America in the category of life expectancy in 1959; 

Whereas prior to the Castro regime, in 1957, Cuba had lower 

infant mortality than France, Belgium, West Germany, 

Israel, Japan, Austria, Italy, Spain, and Portugal; 

Whereas the Cuban dictatorship today under Raul Castro 

and his puppet, Miguel Diaz-Canel, continues to stifle 

dissent through violence and harassment and violate the 

basic human rights of the Cuban people; 


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•HRES 868 IH 

Whereas the Communist regime in Cuba continues to export 

its Communist, anti-American, and authoritarian ideology 

throughout the Western Hemisphere and bolsters authoritarian regimes in Venezuela and Nicaragua; and 

Whereas Communism has claimed at least 100,000,000 victims, and has led to financial ruin and brutal oppression 

in Asia, Europe, and the Western Hemisphere: Now, 

therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) condemns the comments of Senator and 

3 Democratic Socialist Presidential candidate, Bernie 

4 Sanders (I–VT), disregarding the history of systemic 

5 human rights abuses, forced indoctrination, and au6 thoritarian actions of the literacy and education poli7 cies of the Communist Castro dictatorship in Cuba; 

8 (2) condemns the use of firing squads, impris9 onment, torture, and acts of repudiation to suppress 

10 dissent in totalitarian Cuba, as well as the forced 

11 Communist indoctrination policies carried out by the 

12 Castro dictatorship in Cuba; 

13 (3) rejects the false claims that healthcare, lit14 eracy, and education have improved under the Cas15 tro regime; 

16 (4) calls for democratic government, liberation 

17 of all political prisoners, freedom of belief and ex18 pression, and the respect of all basic human rights 

19 for the Cuban people; and 


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•HRES 868 IH 

1 (5) stands in solidarity with the Cuban people 

2 in their struggle to achieve essential freedoms and 

3 liberties. 

Æ 


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