I don’t think the claim that Cuba hasn’t achieved communism is very controversial except among ignorant right-wing people.

Generally when people say “It isn’t real communism”, they don’t mean “It isn’t the end stage of a stateless, moneyless society” but “They weren’t following the ideology of communism, wherein measures are taken towards the end stage of a stateless, moneyless society.”

Which, tbf, is generally true, but considering how many are willing to use that argument when the mood of the immediate audience is hostile, and then turn around and praise that same polity when amongst ML sympathizers is… frustrating.

But I agree that there is way too much apologia regarding Cuba in leftist spaces, strangely even outside of tankie circles.

The worst part is I genuinely believe that Cuba is not as bad as it is often portrayed by right-wingers. Of all the ML-oriented countries, it was probably the best of the lot. I regard Castro as a revolutionary who put his (metaphorical) money where his mouth is, a genuine idealist, a man who did improve the lot of many Cubans, and a leader who was put into a no-win scenario on the international stage. I certainly could not say that I would have done anything better (lacking the benefit of hindsight, of course) in his position, and would likely have done much worse.

But goddamn do I hate it when people play apologist for Cuba against facts. Where every problem is a result of foreign imperialists and all the well-documented issues that go down to the structure of the government itself are handwaved away. And for all my sympathy for Castro, he was still a strongman whose style of leadership was deeply damaging, in the long term, to Cuban institutions, and whose sympathetic traits by no means excuse his authoritarian actions which oppressed many working people in Cuba.