[News] “Tell No Lies, Claim No Easy Victories”: The Cuban Revolution, Social Vulnerability, and Revolutionary Ethics

[Anti-Imperialist News]

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“Tell No Lies, Claim No Easy Victories”: The Cuban Revolution, Social
Vulnerability, and Revolutionary Ethics
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By Isaac Saney <https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1Ar6b7gVHY/> on July 17,
2025

Amilcar Cabral with Fidel.

In one of the most enduring axioms of revolutionary integrity, Amílcar
Cabral—African liberation theorist, freedom fighter, and martyr—urged those
engaged in the struggle for liberation and justice to “Tell no lies, claim
no easy victories.” This precept demands truth-telling, humility, and a
relentless confrontation with reality. It stands in opposition to
demagoguery, denial, and the temptation to obscure difficult truths for the
sake of appearances.

In today’s Cuba, as the country grapples with the profound effects of the
U.S. economic war and internal social challenges, President Miguel
Díaz-Canel’s recent statements, countering previous incongruous (to say the
least) remarks of a now-resigned government minister on inequality and
social vulnerability, reaffirm the Cuban Revolution’s commitment to
Cabral’s principle. Far from concealing its difficulties, the Revolution
has chosen the path of honesty, ethics, and humanism—a path that is
difficult but principled.

The U.S. economic siege against Cuba is not merely an attempt to
destabilize the country’s economy; it is a deliberate strategy of
suffocation. It aims to incite internal discontent, distort the image of
the Cuban government, and ultimately dismantle the gains of the Cuban
Revolution. This is a war of attrition, conducted not only with financial
sanctions and trade restrictions but also with a barrage of misinformation
and psychological warfare. In this climate, any misstep by the Cuban
government or deficiency within Cuban society is exaggerated and
weaponized. As a result, flaws that are inherent to every political and
economic system—especially under duress—are made to appear as unique
failures of socialism. Yet these are not signs of ideological collapse, but
rather indicators of how relentlessly the Revolution is attacked.

Despite this unrelenting pressure, the Cuban revolutionary leadership
continues to engage in a critical self-assessment. In his remarks to the
National Assembly’s Commission on Youth, Children, and Women’s Equality,
President Díaz-Canel does not shy away from acknowledging that the country
faces serious challenges: from economic distortions and worsening
inequality to social behaviours that reflect a breakdown in social,
communal and familial bonds. However, instead of denial or scapegoating, he
calls for solutions rooted in ethics and justice. “The Revolution does not
hide its problems,” he declared. “It faces them with ethics and social
justice, even in the midst of extreme circumstances.”

“These are our problems—our homeless, our vulnerable communities, our
social inequalities,” President Díaz-Canel

This frankness is not weakness—it is revolutionary strength. It is
precisely what Cabral called for: an unflinching honesty that does not
minimize hardship but also does not abandon hope. Díaz-Canel’s insistence
that these are “our problems”—our homeless, our vulnerable communities, our
social inequalities—is a testament to the Revolution’s enduring humanistic
vocation. This is not a government that disowns the marginalized; it
embraces its duty to them. There is a recognition that vulnerability is not
an aberration in a revolutionary society but a consequence of both internal
and external pressures, and therefore demands coordinated, compassionate,
and persistent action.

The Cuban president’s ethical framing of politics echoes another
foundational insight of Cabral: that revolutionary struggle is not merely
about material gains, but about dignity, truth, and values. Díaz-Canel
invoked Cuban revolutionary intellectual Armando Hart to emphasize that
“law as an expression of social justice” and “ethics as an expression of
truth” must guide the Revolution. In doing so, he rebukes superficial or
callous analyses of Cuba’s social difficulties. He cautions against
arrogance and detachment, calling instead for “sensitivity,” “human
warmth,” and “decent conduct” in addressing the country’s deepest social
wounds.

To that end, the Revolution has launched more than thirty targeted social
programs, aimed at alleviating the conditions of vulnerable populations.
These are not symbolic gestures but material commitments, funded despite
the crushing weight of a blockade that seeks to deny Cuba even the basic
resources required for governance. The existence of these programs—backed
by political will, ethical clarity, and popular participation—demonstrates
that the Revolution has not given up on its foundational promises. It
continues to strive, in extremely difficult conditions, towards a society
where no one is left behind.

What makes Cuba’s stance particularly powerful is its refusal to claim easy
victories. It would be tempting, especially under siege, to project an
image of success unmarred by crisis. But the Revolution refuses such
self-congratulatory illusions. As Díaz-Canel states, “We know our problems
have worsened… But the Revolution recognizes that there are causes that
have led to these types of problems, and so the Revolution has to… project
how we are going to solve it, knowing that it’s a long struggle.” The
acknowledgment that progress will be slow and uneven, that not all problems
can be solved at once, is a testament to revolutionary maturity—not
defeatism.

This political and moral clarity is all the more significant given the
dehumanizing narratives promoted by imperialist and monopoly media, which
seek to portray Cuba as a failed state. Against this chorus of cynicism,
the Cuban Revolution asserts a different truth: that a people who are
honest about their difficulties, who remain committed to justice in the
face of adversity, and who maintain solidarity as a guiding principle, are
not defeated.

To persevere and continue to develop under siege, to continue building a
society rooted in dignity, equality, and ethics despite scarcity and
external aggression, is not a failure. It is a revolutionary achievement.
Thus, the Cuban Revolution remains faithful to Cabral’s injunction—not only
in its refusal to lie or claim easy victories, but in its continuing effort
to struggle, to confront, and to care.

As Cuba endures an ongoing economic war designed to destroy the capacity of
the Cuban government to fulfill its promises and commitments to the Cuban
people and erode the island nation’s social fabric, it has chosen the
harder but more principled path. It faces its problems squarely,
acknowledges its shortcomings, and seeks solutions through collective
action and moral responsibility. This commitment to revolutionary ethics
and humanism is perhaps the most powerful proof that the Cuban Revolution,
despite what some might consider insurmountable odds, remains alive,
dignified, and revolutionary.

Honouring Amílcar Cabral’s timeless words,  shows the world what it means
to fight for justice and genuine emancipation with honesty, courage, and
resolve.

*Isaac Saney* is a Cuba and Black studies professor and historian at
Dalhousie University
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