The Machadato, 1924-1928
A. The Platt Amendment
1. Effectively made Cuba a protectorate of the United States
2. Cuba could make no treaties without US approval
3. Cuba’s national debt was limited
4. The US was permitted to intervene in Cuba for “the maintenance of a government
adequate for the protection of life, property and individual liberty.” (Perez“Cuba 1930-1959"
57)
5. Cuba’s sugar crop was limited to a single market, the US
6. Cuba’s economy opened to US penetration. Mining. Transportation. Bankingd.
Agriculture(1) sugar(2) tobacco. Utilities(1) telephone(2) gas(3) electricity(4) water (Perez
“Cuba 1930-1959" 57-8)
● Gerardo Machado had first been elected President in 1924 to a four year term.1.
Growing disaffection with the status quo.
● A. The Junta de Renovación Nacional Cívica denounced graft and corruption in public
life in 1923
● b. University students also organised in 1923 as the FederacíonEstudiantil
Universitaria (FEU)
● c. In 1925, workers organised the Confederación Nacional Obrera deCuba (CNOC)
● d. Also in 1925, the Cuban Communist Party (PCC) was founded.(Perez 1930-1959
59)
● Re-election campaign.
● 1. The Conservative and Popular parties up to this time had tended to alternate
power among themselves. Therefore, the re-election of Machado would draw
opposition.
● 2. Machado succeeded in uniting the traditional elites to re-elect him in order to block
the dissidents.
● D. The Great Depression
● 1. Sugar production declined 60 %
● 2. The Hawley-Smoot Tariff (1930) raised the tariff on Cuban sugar, and Cuba’s share
of the US market dropped from 49.4 % to 25.3 %
● Sugar produces cut wages and laid off workers
● 4. The zafra, the sugar harvest upon which many workers depended, was reduced to
62 days
● 5. “Some 250,000 heads of families, representing approximately 1 million people out
of a total population of 3.9 million, found themselves totally unemployed..” (Perez
1930-1959 60-2)
● 6. Agricultural wages dropped 75 %
● 7. Urban wages declined 50 % (Perez 1930-1959 62)
● 8. Not surprisingly, suffering led to serious unrest
A. The Platt Amendment
1. Effectively made Cuba a protectorate of the United States
2. Cuba could make no treaties without US approval
3. Cuba’s national debt was limited
4. The US was permitted to intervene in Cuba for “the maintenance of a government
adequate for the protection of life, property and individual liberty.” (Perez“Cuba 1930-1959"
57)
5. Cuba’s sugar crop was limited to a single market, the US
6. Cuba’s economy opened to US penetration. Mining. Transportation. Bankingd.
Agriculture(1) sugar(2) tobacco. Utilities(1) telephone(2) gas(3) electricity(4) water (Perez
“Cuba 1930-1959" 57-8)
● Gerardo Machado had first been elected President in 1924 to a four year term.1.
Growing disaffection with the status quo.
● A. The Junta de Renovación Nacional Cívica denounced graft and corruption in public
life in 1923
● b. University students also organised in 1923 as the FederacíonEstudiantil
Universitaria (FEU)
● c. In 1925, workers organised the Confederación Nacional Obrera deCuba (CNOC)
● d. Also in 1925, the Cuban Communist Party (PCC) was founded.(Perez 1930-1959
59)
● Re-election campaign.
● 1. The Conservative and Popular parties up to this time had tended to alternate
power among themselves. Therefore, the re-election of Machado would draw
opposition.
● 2. Machado succeeded in uniting the traditional elites to re-elect him in order to block
the dissidents.
● D. The Great Depression
● 1. Sugar production declined 60 %
● 2. The Hawley-Smoot Tariff (1930) raised the tariff on Cuban sugar, and Cuba’s share
of the US market dropped from 49.4 % to 25.3 %
● Sugar produces cut wages and laid off workers
● 4. The zafra, the sugar harvest upon which many workers depended, was reduced to
62 days
● 5. “Some 250,000 heads of families, representing approximately 1 million people out
of a total population of 3.9 million, found themselves totally unemployed..” (Perez
1930-1959 60-2)
● 6. Agricultural wages dropped 75 %
● 7. Urban wages declined 50 % (Perez 1930-1959 62)
● 8. Not surprisingly, suffering led to serious unrest
