The charismatic leadership legacy of Fidel Castro, Cuba’s president, who ruled between 1976 and 2008, remains an enigmatic and fascinating topic in International Relations. Even today, Cuba has sustained the Communist approach of Castro although the ruler is already demised, even though the country has the liberty to embrace a multi-party democracy that advances a capitalist economic system. Before the election of Fidel as Cuba’s president, Cubans had been oppressed by the precedent regime that engendered corruption, social injustices, and racial inequality. The country's citizens had unwillingly resigned to a lifetime of authoritarian rule that promoted the government's selfish interests at the expense of the civilian who could not access militaristic positions or machinations ( Crane, 2014) . The wrongful use of authority and legitimacy to reinforce forceful obedience in Cuban citizens supported by a dysfunctional state mechanism that upheld impunity practiced by colonialists had become the norm in Cuba, which irked Fidel significantly. Throughout his childhood and young adulthood, Fidel had increasingly become aware of the issues that his fellow citizens were enduring, such as loss of hope for a free country that recognized everyone, segregation of individuals based on their social classes, feeling insignificant enough to warrant attention, lack of subsidized public services, and generally low living standards, which had become the preserve of the elite, upper-class Whites. However, Fidel introduced a political ruling system that recognized every citizen as equal, deserving of state attention, and abled enough to shape the economy, social, and political stability of Cuba, advanced by his charismatic victory speech after defeating Fulgencio Batista in 1956, the Cuban dictator president who undermined the quality of lives of his subjects since the inception of his rule ( Adamou, 2017) .
Literature Review
Cuba emanated from the slavery era, and since its freedom, the presiding president subscribed to the United States of America's preferred ruling style. The ruling president promoted heavy military presence, corruption, oppression of the lower-class citizen, racial segregation, and a capitalist economy that favored the crème de la crème of society at the expense of rural populations and lower-class workers. Thus, the analysis of Fidel Castro's deliverance of the Cuba through a revolution may proffer the qualities, behaviors, and values that he embodied. Fidel’s leadership strategy significantly played a role in his booming, unopposed reign for more than two decades, which the world has termed as electrifying, robust, and deserving the attention of scholars to deduce why. To date, Cubans revere their "savior" and still practice his fancied political, social, and economic practices that can be quickly challenged by other capitalists, rationalists, and idealists globally ( Boline, 2015) . Fidel grouped and created power for achievement of his means by commanding restructuring of state institutions and mechanisms for self-pleasure to rule Cuba during his reign. Fidel understood the importance of followers in sustaining a leader's existence and the need for subjects' consensus to advance overt control, which established his regime. Further, Castro role-modeled the citizen's expected power demonstration of an effective leader. The revolutionist demonstrated through the ability to institute policies deemed fit for establishing a robust economy that enjoyed a stable GDP while retaining the ability to manipulate masses and preserve authority without any opposition or threat from opposers ( Tudoroiu, 2016) . Therefore, Fidel's successful leadership strategy in Cuba can only be conceptualized through the thorough scrutiny of the president's formative years, young adulthood, career, social orientations, values, and environment that enveloped the leader before they ascend into office. Castro often ensured he had support of the masses, a framework that was intensely ignored by previous regimes that advanced oppression as the primary means of achieving economic growth of a nation, severely disregarding the inputs of the "common man."
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The concept of legitimate authority, embodied by Fidel Castro, was first introduced by Marx Weber, who suggested that legitimate ruling can be charismatic, traditional, or bureaucratic (legal-rational) in the text, The Three Types of Legitimate Rule . Weber defined authority as the ability of a leader to influence a circumstance were subjects were entirely or partially willing to obey rules and regulations, and society's orientation towards instituted policies by persons of more powerful positions. Weber indicated that for authority to be established, subordinates' compliance with state rules and regulations should be voluntary, which facilitated its legitimacy, defined as conformity to set rules established by a person of authority. ( Dickson, Gordon, & Huber, 2014) . Thus, charisma in an individual manifests as treatment by followers as a hero, supernatural human, unordinary man endowed with the gift of grace and charm that enthralls the latter, inspiring total devotion commitment from subjects ( Nikoloski, 2015) . The charismatic leader disregards the relevance of rationality, traditional leadership, and legality as the real foundations of a successful political regime that, in the long-run, improves a nation's economic and political stability. Additionally, a charismatic executive does not recognize appropriations or hierarchy since essentially; the leader is the alpha and omega perceived by subjects as a savior. Generally, the charismatic manager creates new principles, regulations, and laws that have a one-time fit for arising situations, discarded once they fulfill the desired purpose, or altered to fit a different scenario.
Fidel Castro: Political Career
The assessment of Fidel Castro's rule can only be well established by the extensive exploration of the ruler's social and political environment before he ascended into power in 1960. Further, it is essential to understand the Cuban Revolution led by the aforementioned leader, which was conducted with the intense passion for liberating his people from an oppressive regime. Fidel Castro was born on August 13, 1926, in Biran village, to a White family of upper-class social standing. Fidel's father, Angel, owned a sugar cane plantation that hired slave labor, which exposed Fidel to the social injustices that the Black workers were subjected to, such as low living standards where abject poverty thrived. Fidel then enrolled at the University of Havana in 1945 to study law, where gangs controlled books' distributions ( Adamou, 2017) . The university launched Fidel's political career, advanced by intense exposure to anti-colonialism, socialism, and nationalism, three components that his country needed most. Fidel later joined the Partido Ortodoxo political party established by Eduardo Chibas in 1947, impressed by the party's slogan, "popular socialist message of social justice and fighting corruption." In 1952, Fidel planned to vie for a Congressional seat in Cuba, but Fulgencio Batista thwarted his political ambition canceled elections after staging a military coup that allowed him to re-seize power ( Adamou, 2017) . Angry Fidel then retaliated by assembling insurgents to combat Batista's oppressive rule on July 26, 1953, attacked the Moncada barracks, and, unfortunately, failed miserably, leading to his imprisonment. When Batista mandated that Fidel appears on media to explain why he had attempted to overthrow the government, the latter expressed his charisma by proffering the speech, History Will Absolve Me where he openly shared his contempt for Batista's government, which triggered the president's wrath, condemning the young lawyer to 15 years in prison ( Adamou, 2017) . However, Fidel was released in 1955 through a government amnesty, which encouraged his flight to Mexico, and in 1956, he re-launched his coup to overthrow Batista from power. Although Fidel was defeated a second time, he did not quit his decision to free Cubans from Batista's oppressive rule, eventually succeeding with the help of rural and low-class residents of Cuba, and in 1959, Batista conceded defeat, launching a socialist era for Cubans.
Fidel's Charismatic Ruling
Political scholars continue to be fascinated by Fidel's charismatic leadership once he was elected as Cuba's ruling president, which the latter embodied in countless scenarios. For instance, Fidel's speech was full of positivity, desisting from humiliating the soldiers who had thwarted his plans to overthrow Batista on several occasions. Further, Fidel asserted that he expected Cubans to unite for the country to be truly redeemed, besides organizing a public execution of more than 500 war criminals as retribution for the thousands of lost lives during Batista's regime, an action supported by 93%of Cubans ( Gugnin, Ostasz, & Lisnevskaya, 2019) . Moreover, Fidel frequently consulted citizens on critical policies that would affect their livelihoods, used simple and easy to conceptualize language that peasants could identify within his speeches, and used quotations from the Bible to further attract citizens' support from time to time, and frequently reminded Cubans that his government aimed to provide shoes, food, drugs, education, and that they should forget the tribulations experienced in the past ( Buzzanco, 2017) . Fidel then restructured Cuban's government, creating the Main Law system that established a Council of Ministers as the nation's ruling leaders, which ended the centralized power of the president to make critical decisions that dictated the livelihoods of the citizens negatively if the ruling president so willed. Fidel's leadership in Cuba in the 1960s was based on "Castoism," best defined as ruling that is inclined more towards actions instead of theory as had been practiced by his predecessor.
Further, Fidel embodied charisma through his campaign to enhance his visual presence in Cuba, through compelling the institution of paintings, statues, posters, and pictures to replace Batista's reminisce the latter's oppressive regime that hurt Cubans' economic and social development significantly, resulting in a hopeless, destitute country that survived on hard labor and meager pay. Often, Fidel mandated that his visual representation icons bear slogans such as "Patria o Muerte" (Homeland or death) and "Yo soy la revolución" (I am the Revolution), or words that highlighted the achievements of the Revolution as reminders for Cubans that the new president was responsible for their freedom from Batista's malicious and repressive ruling that had undermined their dignity for many decades, and the American militaristic influence that supposedly advanced corruption in the country and racial segregation embodied by poverty ( Adamou, 2017) . Fidel ensured that even in rural regions, his visual representations were enacted for the continuous reminder for islanders of his selfless act of Revolution, which reinforced the victory speech he gave in all villages after he succeeded in overthrowing Batista ( Buzzanco, 2017) . Finally, Fidel was considerably aware of the power of propaganda to oust him out of the presidential position he sustained through charismatic techniques, which propelled the command to monitor all media channels, such as content aired on radio and television, journalists' representation of the president, newspaper reports of the government dealings, and publishing houses. Fidel ensured that all the media houses were governed by the state to avert the destruction of the Revolution's outcomes that the latter had labored to ensure successful establishment in Cuba. Moreover, Castro established international relationships to help advance his revolutionary agenda. For instance, the leader united with Raul Castro and Che Guavera to visit Palestine, in an attempt to create an alliance between Cuba and Palestine, which would result in creation of opportunities of citizens from both countries that could strengthen their economies. When the Palestine Liberation Organization was created in 1964, Cuba publicly declared support for the party and its intentions, a strategy that bolstered the relationship between Palestine and Cuba significantly. Castro openly declared that in his view, Palestine’s liberation could be leagued with Cuba’s revolution that the president had championed (Buzzanco, 2017). The sentiments earned Castro a massive support from the Palestinian community, besides reinforcing adoration from his followers. Moreover, Castro challenged the apartheid that Whites perpetrated in South Africa, which had propelled the imprisonment of Nelson Mandela. Castro openly condemned the vice mentioned above, which also intensified the support he received from Cubans. Therefore, Fidel was a charismatic leader, who recognized the influence accorded to ensuring masses viewed him as a super-hero, reinforcing willing obedience from citizens engendered by the absence of a free media that might have highlighted Fidel's weaknesses, and perhaps, awaken Cubans that although the Revolutionist president manifested behavior that showed he had their best interest at heart, a communist economic system instituted by Fidel was insufficient to strengthen Cuba's economy in the long-run.
Conclusion
Fidel Castro was a phenomenal president who ruled Cuba between 1976 and 2008, leveraging charisma and suppressing the media's authority to advance his agenda in the country. Fidel assumed power after successfully overthrowing Fulgencio Batista from power in 1959, having been angered by the latter's corrupt and oppressive leadership that engendered inequalities, social injustices, corruption, and low quality of life for Cubans, with resources being held by a few elite individuals. After his victory, Fidel embodied charisma by regularly consulting Cubans on vital policies, instituting visual representations of him in urban and rural areas, publicly executing 500 war criminals who had murdered thousands of innocent Cubans during Batista's reign, and abolishing the capitalist economic system that favored the upper-class Whites only. Castro created an empire free from American influence and racism, which encouraged Cubans’ self-determination to escape from abject poverty that had been embedded by the precedent regime. Indeed, Fidel was a real savior and rightfully deserved to be revered by his subjects.
References
Adamou, A. (2017). The Social Construction of Charisma: Cuba and the case of Fidel Castro . Leiden University. https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/94138732.pdf
Boline, N. V. (2015). Fidel Castro 's Grand Strategy in the Cuban Revolution: 1959-1968 . Virginia Military Institute . https://digitalcommons.northgeorgia.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=https://www.google.com/&httpsredir=1&article=1115&context=papersandpubs
Buzzanco, R. (2017). Fidel Castro (1926–2016) and global solidarity. The Sixties , 10 (2), 274-280. https://doi.org/10.1080/17541328.2017.1389556
Crane, L. R. (2014). Cuba Revisited: F visited: From Revolution t olution to Evolution olution . The John Marshall Law School . https://digitalcommons.law.seattleu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1714&context=sjsj
Dickson, E. S., Gordon, S. C., & Huber, G. A. (2014). Institutional sources of legitimate authority: An experimental investigation. American Journal of Political Science , 59 (1), 109-127. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajps.12139
Gugnin, A., Ostasz, G., & Lisnevskaya, Y. (2019). Fidel Castro as a leader, revolution manager, and marketer. Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Social, Economic, and Academic Leadership (ICSEAL 2019) . https://doi.org/10.2991/icseal-19.2019.70
Nikoloski, K. (2015). Charismatic leadership and power: Using the power of charisma for better leadership in the enterprises. Journal of Process Management – New Technologies, International , 3 (2), 18-27. https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/35342228.pdf
Tudoroiu, T. (2016). Fidel Castro and the radicalization of non-alignment. International Studies , 53 (2), 118-135. https://doi.org/10.1177/0020881717726853
