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Global Justice: Three Essays on Liberation and Socialism
Three speeches on corporate globalism and imperialism by one of the most widely known guerilla fighters, political theorists, and organizers, Che Guevara.
In this collection of three speeches, Ernesto Che Guevara offers a revolutionary view of a world in which human solidarity and understanding replace imperialist aggression and exploitation. First, in a sharp speech given in Algeria on February 24, 1965 at the Afro-Asia Economic Seminar, Che speaks about the nature of capitalism and the revolutionary struggle that would open the way for a new, socialist society. Guevara's 1965 essay, "Socialism and Man in Cuba," is a milestone in twentieth-century emancipatory social thought. Finally, “Message to the Tricontinental” is one of Che’s more well-known works, which outlines the tactics and strategies that should be followed in revolutionary struggle. This collection of writings merges Che's philosophy, politics, and economics in his all encompassing, coherent revolutionary vision. His ideas and his struggle strike a chord in the current search for global justice.
- GenresPolitics
100 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 25, 2024
3 people are currently reading
150 people want to read
About the author
Ernesto Che Guevara
406 books2,071 followersErnesto "Che" Guevara, commonly known as El Che or simply Che, was a Marxist revolutionary, physician, author, intellectual, guerrilla leader, diplomat, and military theorist. A major figure of the Cuban Revolution, since his death Guevara's stylized visage has become an ubiquitous countercultural symbol and global icon within popular culture.
His belief in the necessity of world revolution to advance the interests of the poor prompted his involvement in Guatemala's social reforms under President Jacobo Arbenz, whose eventual CIA-assisted overthrow solidified Guevara's radical ideology. Later, while living in Mexico City, he met Raúl and Fidel Castro, joined their movement, and travelled to Cuba with the intention of overthrowing the U.S.-backed Batista regime. Guevara soon rose to prominence among the insurgents, was promoted to second-in-command, and played a pivotal role in the successful two year guerrilla campaign that topled the Cuban government.
After serving in a number of key roles in the new government, Guevara left Cuba in 1965 to foment revolution abroad, first unsuccessfully in Congo-Kinshasa and later in Bolivia, where he was captured by CIA-assisted Bolivian forces and executed.
Guevara remains both a revered and reviled historical figure, polarized in the collective imagination in a multitude of biographies, memoirs, essays, documentaries, songs, and films. Time magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people of the 20th century, while an Alberto Korda photograph of him entitled "Guerrillero Heroico," was declared "the most famous photograph in the world" by the Maryland Institute of Art.
His belief in the necessity of world revolution to advance the interests of the poor prompted his involvement in Guatemala's social reforms under President Jacobo Arbenz, whose eventual CIA-assisted overthrow solidified Guevara's radical ideology. Later, while living in Mexico City, he met Raúl and Fidel Castro, joined their movement, and travelled to Cuba with the intention of overthrowing the U.S.-backed Batista regime. Guevara soon rose to prominence among the insurgents, was promoted to second-in-command, and played a pivotal role in the successful two year guerrilla campaign that topled the Cuban government.
After serving in a number of key roles in the new government, Guevara left Cuba in 1965 to foment revolution abroad, first unsuccessfully in Congo-Kinshasa and later in Bolivia, where he was captured by CIA-assisted Bolivian forces and executed.
Guevara remains both a revered and reviled historical figure, polarized in the collective imagination in a multitude of biographies, memoirs, essays, documentaries, songs, and films. Time magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people of the 20th century, while an Alberto Korda photograph of him entitled "Guerrillero Heroico," was declared "the most famous photograph in the world" by the Maryland Institute of Art.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
September 22, 2024
“Of what difference are the dangers to a human being or a people, or the sacrifices they make, when what is at stake is the destiny of humanity?”
Che’s words hold such immense power. His analysis, though decades old, is still extremely pertinent today. I specifically loved his analysis of neocolonialism. He divides neocolonialism into two forms of penetration. The first one is the brutal form, which he says has no respect or concealment in its intentions; a good example is the DRC with the blatant and exploitative extractions of its natural resources to serve Western nations. The second one is a more subtle form of penetration. Che describes this as the penetration into countries that have formally declared their “independence”, linking up and installing the parasitical local bourgeoisie in power — essentially placing a government that perfectly aligns with the west's interests. You can examine this in many African and Arab nations today.
Che goes on to analyze many different topics, such as the laws of capitalism, revolutionary education, the need for revolutionary art, etc. All of these are excellent analyses and still hold relevance to our contemporary world.
Che’s words hold such immense power. His analysis, though decades old, is still extremely pertinent today. I specifically loved his analysis of neocolonialism. He divides neocolonialism into two forms of penetration. The first one is the brutal form, which he says has no respect or concealment in its intentions; a good example is the DRC with the blatant and exploitative extractions of its natural resources to serve Western nations. The second one is a more subtle form of penetration. Che describes this as the penetration into countries that have formally declared their “independence”, linking up and installing the parasitical local bourgeoisie in power — essentially placing a government that perfectly aligns with the west's interests. You can examine this in many African and Arab nations today.
Che goes on to analyze many different topics, such as the laws of capitalism, revolutionary education, the need for revolutionary art, etc. All of these are excellent analyses and still hold relevance to our contemporary world.
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July 10, 2025es increíble que las palabras del che y sus textos/speeches, escritos alrededor de los sesentas, sigan teniendo tanta relevancia 60 años después. prácticamente crecí con la imagen del che gracias a mi papá que me contaba sobre su viaje en moto por américa latina y sus peleas en asia y áfrica; ahora que puedo leerlo entiendo por qué fue y es una figura tan emblemática.
el socialismo y el hombre en cuba me dejó sin palabras, en este expone su filosofía, ética y política de una manera muy metódica (típica del che) y curiosamente, muy vulnerable
“déjeme decirle, a riesgo de parecer ridículo, que el revolucionario verdadero está guiado por grandes sentimientos de amor. es imposible pensar en un revolucionario auténtico sin esta cualidad”
el socialismo y el hombre en cuba me dejó sin palabras, en este expone su filosofía, ética y política de una manera muy metódica (típica del che) y curiosamente, muy vulnerable
“déjeme decirle, a riesgo de parecer ridículo, que el revolucionario verdadero está guiado por grandes sentimientos de amor. es imposible pensar en un revolucionario auténtico sin esta cualidad”
November 18, 2025
"For us there is no valid definition of socialism other than the abolition of the exploitation of one human being by another."
If there is one person who saved me, it would be Che Guevara. This is not an exaggeration, as he came into my life during a time where everything was falling apart. I started questioning the neoliberalism that I had been taught was the only way to liberate myself from poverty, the purpose of still fighting on after my tumultuous decade-long relationship had come to an end, and why on earth life was still worth living. I remembered very clearly that I had started reading Che's journals out of total curiosity that summer, and eventually this was what drove me to read his essays.
Socialism and Man in Cuba was what fundamentally convinced me of the necessity of socialism. Before I read it, I wasn't sure how people like Che could have been so enamored with revolution; but when I realized the purpose of socialism was not just to uphold an economic model, that's when it clicked. Socialism was a method to create an entirely new human being by reshaping the superstructural categories which bound them, to be accomplished from the liberation of productive forces, thus freeing humanity from the crushing alienation induced by capitalism as a model. He said it in a more poetic way, but when I absorbed this, I understood and became a Marxist-Leninist.
It was this conviction which I saw so clearly in Che which continues to inspire me to this day, and will, I believe, inspire me for the rest of my life.
The fact is, we can all be like Che Guevara, and we should all strive to emulate him. Here was a man who so loved the world that he willingly gave everything — his nationality, his possessions, his family, his wife, his children, his fame, his very life— so that the international proletariat could be free from their chains. And then they killed him, and when faced with death, knowing that martyrdom was coming, he was glad. "Shoot, coward, you are only going to kill a man." — and they did, they killed him like an animal, mutilated his body, and tried to hide his bones under an airstrip. Even in death, he would not stay hidden, and he was found, decades later, and returned to Cuba for a proper burial.
I genuinely have no words for how much I love and respect this man. I think I've read these essays at least a half dozen times now and will continue reading them. ¡Hasta la victoria siempre!
If there is one person who saved me, it would be Che Guevara. This is not an exaggeration, as he came into my life during a time where everything was falling apart. I started questioning the neoliberalism that I had been taught was the only way to liberate myself from poverty, the purpose of still fighting on after my tumultuous decade-long relationship had come to an end, and why on earth life was still worth living. I remembered very clearly that I had started reading Che's journals out of total curiosity that summer, and eventually this was what drove me to read his essays.
Socialism and Man in Cuba was what fundamentally convinced me of the necessity of socialism. Before I read it, I wasn't sure how people like Che could have been so enamored with revolution; but when I realized the purpose of socialism was not just to uphold an economic model, that's when it clicked. Socialism was a method to create an entirely new human being by reshaping the superstructural categories which bound them, to be accomplished from the liberation of productive forces, thus freeing humanity from the crushing alienation induced by capitalism as a model. He said it in a more poetic way, but when I absorbed this, I understood and became a Marxist-Leninist.
It was this conviction which I saw so clearly in Che which continues to inspire me to this day, and will, I believe, inspire me for the rest of my life.
The fact is, we can all be like Che Guevara, and we should all strive to emulate him. Here was a man who so loved the world that he willingly gave everything — his nationality, his possessions, his family, his wife, his children, his fame, his very life— so that the international proletariat could be free from their chains. And then they killed him, and when faced with death, knowing that martyrdom was coming, he was glad. "Shoot, coward, you are only going to kill a man." — and they did, they killed him like an animal, mutilated his body, and tried to hide his bones under an airstrip. Even in death, he would not stay hidden, and he was found, decades later, and returned to Cuba for a proper burial.
I genuinely have no words for how much I love and respect this man. I think I've read these essays at least a half dozen times now and will continue reading them. ¡Hasta la victoria siempre!
October 8, 2025
3 pequenos textos que exploram a visão de Che sobre múltiplos temas que permanecem relevantes até o presente. Temas como: Neocolonialismo, o papel da cultura e da arte em uma sociedade, o tipo de sociedade que é formada em uma revolução e o papel do movimento revolucionário de vanguarda em ser um exemplo e um guia para essa sociedade, as diferentes formas em que o imperialismo atua em prol da manutenção dos seus interesses no Sul Global, e muito mais. Entre previsões acertadas e erros idealistas ao tentar prever o futuro, os textos revelam as forças, as limitações e, principalmente, a pressa de Guevara em lutar para mudar o mundo e emancipar o homem.
July 17, 2024
Che Lives!
Reading Che Guevara is like a breath of fresh air and a slap in the face. He was so certain that a better world was within reach if only “the people” get their shit together. Building a revolutionary movement in the Tri-Continental nations was on the agenda and the lessons of The Cuban Revolution were a path to follow. Start 2, 3, many Vietnams!
Reading Che Guevara is like a breath of fresh air and a slap in the face. He was so certain that a better world was within reach if only “the people” get their shit together. Building a revolutionary movement in the Tri-Continental nations was on the agenda and the lessons of The Cuban Revolution were a path to follow. Start 2, 3, many Vietnams!
February 8, 2025
Che is a great and succinct writer and for a short read of only 3 selected works of his, these are great picks. "Socialism and Man in Cuba" in particular feels like one that American socialists shouldn't skip.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews