Che's Repulsive Legend Lives 40 Years After His Death

Today marks the 40th anniversary of the death of Ernesto Guevara, better known to many as “Che.” If it’s anything like the 30th anniversary in 1997, there will likely be all kinds of celebrations and commemorations from here to Havana, all across Latin America and on university campuses throughout the U.S. Who is Che Guevara, and what did he do to deserve all this recognition? Why is his likeness plastered everywhere from the bodies of Hollywood stars to the t-shirts of teenage mall rats?

Put simply, Che Guevara was a mass murderer. It would be impossible to describe the extent of Guevara’s crimes against humanity within these few paragraphs, but for starters, he executed, either personally or by direct order, thousands upon thousands of Cubans who were accused of “counter-revolutionary” actions or attitudes. These firing squad executions were carried out in cold blood, usually without the accused so much as standing trial for their so-called crimes. On the rare occasion that there was a trial, it was nothing but a show for the international media, much like the Cuban “Revolution” itself.

Whether in his laughable attempts at guerrilla warfare, or his running the Cuban economy (into the ground), Che was a pathetic failure at everything except for the merciless, point blank murder of his unarmed prisoners.

Guevara’s “heroism” is a fictional invention of the Communist government of Cuba, as are their celebrated utopian health care system and their U.N.-acknowledged authority on human rights. To this day, starving and oppressed Cubans speak out against their tyrants and find themselves in prisons and concentration camps. Many people may be singing Che’s praises today, but the Cuban refugees here in Syracuse won’t be among them, and neither will I.