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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 agression 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.
In this collection of three speeches, Ernesto Che Guevara offers a revolutionary view of a world in which human solidarity and understanding replace imperialist agression 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.
96 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2002
8 people are currently reading
370 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 - 16 of 16 reviews
September 10, 2024
I love the last essay the most, 'create two, three, many Vitenams'. I loved how he explain how a war against imperialism is cruel and requires all of the people. It is especially true when I considered resistance groups in Palestine currently and specifically Hamas etc., as they are currently fighting a terrible monster that is worse then imperialism, which is settler colonialism. I liked how Che mentioned that we cannot merely verbally support the oppressed, but to fight with them. 'To wish the victim success is not enough; one must share his or her fate. One must join that victim in death or in victory.' - Che Guevara. It remind of the hadith that goes 'Whosoever of you sees an evil, let him change it with his hand; and if he is not able to do so, then [let him change it] with his tongue; and if he is not able to do so, then with his heart — and that is the weakest of faith.'. Che Guevara was truly ahead of his time and the footnotes in the seven stories publication shows us that. Finally may Palestine be free.
March 31, 2010
First of all...... this Spanish was above my level. I jumped from Harry Potter to radical political theory..... A little over-ambitious, it turns out. It took me several weeks to work my way through this tiny little pamphlet. Because of my general difficulty in comprehension, my rating and review probably aren't very accurate or fair.
I am very glad I read this. Che was clearly one of the most important figures of the 20th century. As a radical myself, I want to understand how other people approach ideas that I spend a lot of time thinking about.
One marked difference between Che and I is his approach to violence. This is especially clear in the last essay, "Crear dos, tres, muchos Viet Nam es la consigna." He makes it very clear that violence is not only okay, but absolutely necessary to overthrow violent, oppressive imperialists. He directs a lot of antagonism specifically towards the US (which he calls the United States of North America, very appropriately). While I'm not philosophically committed to 100% non-violence after the manner of, say, Gandhi, I'm definitely several steps behind him on the ladder. One quote in particular will sum up the crux of our disagreement:
"El odio como factor de lucha; el odio intransigente al enemigo, que impulsa más alla de las limitaciones naturales del ser humano y lo convierte en una efectiva, violenta, selectiva y fría máquina de matar. Nuestros soldados tienen que ser así; un pueblo sin odio no puede triunfar sobre un enemigo brutal."
In English: Hate is a factor in the fight; hate towards the enemy that pushes further the limitations of a human being and converts him into an effective, violent, selective and cold killing machine. Our soldiers have to be this way; a people without hate cannot triumph over a brutal enemy.
Whew! That's pretty strong. Perhaps it's because I was born into the group of oppressors that he is fighting against, however unwillingly, that I'm so uncomfortable with it. But I just think it is so important, in bringing about social change, to remember that your opposition is composed of human beings.
Then again, what Che was fighting for was not "social change" but revolution, and rightly so. America has poisoned societies around the world, and continues to do so. It is sickening, truly. But I really like his words in "El socialismo y el hombre" about how no revolution is completed by changing the structures of society. The hearts of the people have to be changed. And I think that, rather than just killing off the bad guys, it is much more important to change their hearts. I think this often has to be done forcefully.... but the motivation should never be hate - it should be love for the people and society you are fighting for. When hate replaces love as our motivator, I think it is too easy for the oppressed to take their newfound power and become the oppressors themselves (a la the Israelits fleeing slavery in Egypt to commit genocide in Canaan).
Anyway..... very, very thought-provoking read. I rather want to read it in English now. It is helping me to articulate my own thoughts about things.
I am very glad I read this. Che was clearly one of the most important figures of the 20th century. As a radical myself, I want to understand how other people approach ideas that I spend a lot of time thinking about.
One marked difference between Che and I is his approach to violence. This is especially clear in the last essay, "Crear dos, tres, muchos Viet Nam es la consigna." He makes it very clear that violence is not only okay, but absolutely necessary to overthrow violent, oppressive imperialists. He directs a lot of antagonism specifically towards the US (which he calls the United States of North America, very appropriately). While I'm not philosophically committed to 100% non-violence after the manner of, say, Gandhi, I'm definitely several steps behind him on the ladder. One quote in particular will sum up the crux of our disagreement:
"El odio como factor de lucha; el odio intransigente al enemigo, que impulsa más alla de las limitaciones naturales del ser humano y lo convierte en una efectiva, violenta, selectiva y fría máquina de matar. Nuestros soldados tienen que ser así; un pueblo sin odio no puede triunfar sobre un enemigo brutal."
In English: Hate is a factor in the fight; hate towards the enemy that pushes further the limitations of a human being and converts him into an effective, violent, selective and cold killing machine. Our soldiers have to be this way; a people without hate cannot triumph over a brutal enemy.
Whew! That's pretty strong. Perhaps it's because I was born into the group of oppressors that he is fighting against, however unwillingly, that I'm so uncomfortable with it. But I just think it is so important, in bringing about social change, to remember that your opposition is composed of human beings.
Then again, what Che was fighting for was not "social change" but revolution, and rightly so. America has poisoned societies around the world, and continues to do so. It is sickening, truly. But I really like his words in "El socialismo y el hombre" about how no revolution is completed by changing the structures of society. The hearts of the people have to be changed. And I think that, rather than just killing off the bad guys, it is much more important to change their hearts. I think this often has to be done forcefully.... but the motivation should never be hate - it should be love for the people and society you are fighting for. When hate replaces love as our motivator, I think it is too easy for the oppressed to take their newfound power and become the oppressors themselves (a la the Israelits fleeing slavery in Egypt to commit genocide in Canaan).
Anyway..... very, very thought-provoking read. I rather want to read it in English now. It is helping me to articulate my own thoughts about things.
April 21, 2024
La Postface est ultra intéressante et les discours du Che, malheureusement, toujours d'actualité...
January 14, 2025
These essays derive from the 1960s and yet they are still applicable to this day. American Imperialism continues to be the poison that corrupts many nations - we need a revolution now more than ever.
Che’s mind is truly a gift. I am continually amazed at how beautifully he is able to articulate socialist ideas in fighting against and defeating imperialism in Latin America, Africa and Asia. His reinforcement of Revolutionary humanism and ensuring to center love and community whilst also validating that hate of the enemy and armed struggle must be employed to achieve victory makes my own thoughts and ideas feel seen.
Truly one of the best God has ever made and looking forward to reading more of his writings.
(Also had my mind blown when he predicted the US directly attacking Cambodia in 1967. This was three years prior to the US covertly carpet bombing Cambodia in 1970!)
Che’s mind is truly a gift. I am continually amazed at how beautifully he is able to articulate socialist ideas in fighting against and defeating imperialism in Latin America, Africa and Asia. His reinforcement of Revolutionary humanism and ensuring to center love and community whilst also validating that hate of the enemy and armed struggle must be employed to achieve victory makes my own thoughts and ideas feel seen.
Truly one of the best God has ever made and looking forward to reading more of his writings.
(Also had my mind blown when he predicted the US directly attacking Cambodia in 1967. This was three years prior to the US covertly carpet bombing Cambodia in 1970!)
Read
October 23, 2025“There are no borders in this struggle to the death. We cannot be indifferent to what happens anywhere in the world, because a victory by any country over imperialism is our victory, just as any country's defeat is a defeat for all of us. The practice of proletarian internationalism is not only a duty for the peoples struggling for a better future, it is also an inescapable necessity. If the imperialist enemy, the United States or any other, carries out its attack against the underdeveloped peoples and the socialist countries, elementary logic determines the need for an alliance between the underdeveloped peoples and the socialist countries. If there were no other uniting factor, the common enemy should be enough.”
March 31, 2025
“We socialists are freer because we are more fulfilled;we are more fulfilled because we are freer”
“The solidarity of the progressive world with the Vietnamese people has been something of the bitter irony of the plebeians cheering on the gladiators in the Roman Circus. To wish the victim success is not enough; one must share his or her fate. One must join that victim in death or in victory”
“Wherever death may surprise us, let it be welcome if our battle cry has reached even one receptive ear, if another hand reaches out to take up our arms, and others come forward to join in our funeral dirge with the rattling of machine guns and with new cries of battle and victory.”
Patria o muerte
“The solidarity of the progressive world with the Vietnamese people has been something of the bitter irony of the plebeians cheering on the gladiators in the Roman Circus. To wish the victim success is not enough; one must share his or her fate. One must join that victim in death or in victory”
“Wherever death may surprise us, let it be welcome if our battle cry has reached even one receptive ear, if another hand reaches out to take up our arms, and others come forward to join in our funeral dirge with the rattling of machine guns and with new cries of battle and victory.”
Patria o muerte
May 4, 2025
el revolucionario verdadero esta guiado por grandes sentimientos de amor
pues toda la razón Ernesto eres el mejor y te amo con todo mi corazón
cómo se nota en sus palabras todo lo que genuinamente confía en la revolución y en el internacionalismo proletario wow
pues toda la razón Ernesto eres el mejor y te amo con todo mi corazón
cómo se nota en sus palabras todo lo que genuinamente confía en la revolución y en el internacionalismo proletario wow
January 15, 2024
Despite his flaws Che still speaks to our times. Love for our comrades and hatred of imperialism are needed now more than ever.
January 22, 2025
Long live the revolution
February 8, 2025
Excellent insight into the man and his vision; with a foreward that's worth reading; speech and letters
October 12, 2008
Three of Che's most important writings, compiled and republished here in 2001 under the title "Global Justice" (just in time for the Global Justice movement).
1. His speech at the Afro-Asian Conference in Algeria, February 1965
2. "Socialism and Man in Cuba", written March 1965
3. His famous "Create Two, Three, Many Vietnams" essay, actually titled "Message to the Tricontinental" (Conference on Solidarity with the Peoples of Asia, Africa and Latin America, that was held in Cuba in January 1966)
Together we discover the elaboration of the politics and strategy that became dominant among the revolutionary left of the Sixties - anti-imperialism by wars of national liberation, solidarity of oppressed nations against the Yankee empire, and the creation of a new culture and society based on solidarity and self-sacrifice.
There are problems of course, we can look at the history of the last 40 years to see the limitations of these politics, but there's also something inspiring about Che's works (written or otherwise) that is time-tested.
The question we need to face, and our Sixties predecessors failed to grasp, is how can we deal with our own success?
Worth checking out for those interested in the ideas behind the beret and the t-shirt, and i'm pretty sure you can get these essays online.
1. His speech at the Afro-Asian Conference in Algeria, February 1965
2. "Socialism and Man in Cuba", written March 1965
3. His famous "Create Two, Three, Many Vietnams" essay, actually titled "Message to the Tricontinental" (Conference on Solidarity with the Peoples of Asia, Africa and Latin America, that was held in Cuba in January 1966)
Together we discover the elaboration of the politics and strategy that became dominant among the revolutionary left of the Sixties - anti-imperialism by wars of national liberation, solidarity of oppressed nations against the Yankee empire, and the creation of a new culture and society based on solidarity and self-sacrifice.
There are problems of course, we can look at the history of the last 40 years to see the limitations of these politics, but there's also something inspiring about Che's works (written or otherwise) that is time-tested.
The question we need to face, and our Sixties predecessors failed to grasp, is how can we deal with our own success?
Worth checking out for those interested in the ideas behind the beret and the t-shirt, and i'm pretty sure you can get these essays online.
April 30, 2011
I read this book in my way back just returning from Cuba, I have to say it did bring me back to my sophomore years of education when I was a fervent socialist idealist. I fully enjoyed this book and found it quite a light refreshing read to get back in track and put my lands in order.
“It is necessary to deepen conscious participation, individual and collective, in all the structures of management and production, and to link this to the idea of the need for technical and ideological education, so that the individual will realize that these processes are closely interdependent and their advancement is parallel. In this way the individual will reach total consciousness as a social being, which is equivalent to the full realization as a human creature, once the chains of alienation are broken“
“It is necessary to deepen conscious participation, individual and collective, in all the structures of management and production, and to link this to the idea of the need for technical and ideological education, so that the individual will realize that these processes are closely interdependent and their advancement is parallel. In this way the individual will reach total consciousness as a social being, which is equivalent to the full realization as a human creature, once the chains of alienation are broken“
May 17, 2014
The majority of this booklet consisted of communist propaganda and war mongering. Its saving point is that it calls attention to the destructiveness of neo-colonialism. I'll stick to reading Howard Zinn, Noam Chomsky, and Chris Hedges for political science.
February 15, 2011
I couldn't get into this book at all
August 19, 2012
Excellent read
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews