“JAN 24, 1961: Alberto Muller Quintana, secretary general of the Cuban Student’s Directorate [Directoria Revolucinario Estudentil] (DRE) sends a letter to President [John F.] Kennedy denouncing [Fidel] Castro’s political, and economic programs. The letter reviews the regime’s ‘calculated’ takeover of all sectors of the society-politics, religion, unions, repression etc. The DRE requests U.S. support in […]
Tag: quotes
1/22/1961
“JAN 22, 1961: Several members of the incoming Kennedy Administration including Dean Rusk [U.S. Secretary of State], Robert McNamara [U.S. Secretary of Defense], Chester Bowles [Under Secretary of State], and Robert Kennedy [U.S. Attorney General] receive a briefing on the Cuba operation at the State Department.” “The Bay of Pigs Invasion/Playa Giron: A Chronology of […]
1/20/1961
“John F. Kennedy (January 20, 1961—November 22, 1963). Democratic. Also known as JFK. At age 43 Kennedy was the second youngest president ever when elected, after Theodore Roosevelt. JFK was the only president to have won a Pulitzer Prize and the only Catholic president. Events that happened during Kennedy’s presidency included the building of the […]
1/19/1961
“JAN 19, 1961: President [Dwight D.] Eisenhower meets again with President-elect [John F.] Kennedy and endorses the covert Cuban operation. Eisenhower makes it clear that the project is going very well and that it is the new administration’s responsibility to do whatever is necessary to bring it to a successful conclusion. According to notes taken […]
1/18/1961
“JAN 18, 1961: Ambassador [Whiting] Willauer reports to Under Secretary of State Merchant that ‘the Group, DOD [Department of Defense], CIA [Central Intelligence Agency], and ARA [American Rental Association] (to a limited extent)’ have updated DOD on ‘current thinking on the program for Cuba,’ and ‘after concluding this [they] assumed that the December 6 plan […]
1/16/1961
“JAN 16, 1961: URA [Union Revolucionaria Anticomunista, Anti-Communist Revolutionary Union] representative Marcos Valdes Castilla sends a message to the MRR [Movimiento de Recuperacion Revolucionaria– Revolutionary Recovery Movement] stating that a message has been received from Cuba stating that [Fidel] Castro’s forces will start an offensive against the resistance forces in the Escambray. ‘Help is urgently […]
1/12/1961
“JAN 12, 1961: The Cuban government arrests a group of internal resistance forces, including their commander, Ramon Carvajal, for conspiring against the state.” “The Bay of Pigs Invasion/Playa Giron: A Chronology of Events,” The National Security Archive, NSArchive2.gwu.edu […]
1/11/1961
“JAN 11, 1961: Ambassador [Whiting] Willauer representing the State Department and Tracy Barnes of CIA discuss with representatives of the Joint Staff the overall problem of effecting the overthrow of Castro. This is the first time the JCS [Joint Chiefs of Staff] at the working level is informed of the plan being developed in the […]
1/10/1961
“JAN 10, 1961: The New York Times publishes a front page story entitled ‘U.S. Helps Train an Anti-Castro Force at Secret Guatemalan Air-Ground Base.’ Written by Paul Kennedy, the article reports that ‘Commando-like forces are being drilled in guerrilla warfare tactics by foreign personnel, mostly from the United States.’” “The Bay of Pigs Invasion/Playa Giron: […]
1/6/1961
“JAN 6, 1961: The State Department says it doubts newspaper reports that [Fidel] Castro is planning to let the Soviet Union establish missile bases in Cuba.” “The Bay of Pigs Invasion/Playa Giron: A Chronology of Events,” The National Security Archive, NSArchive2.gwu.edu […]