Che Guevara

Ernesto "Che" Guevara was an Argentine Marxist Revolutionary, physician, author, guerilla warfare leader, diplomat, military theorist, and a major figure during the Cuban Revolution. Today he has become an icon among popular culture and is worn on many t-shirts. 3/4 of those who wear his shirt do not even know much about Che. Che was simply a product of his environment and after travelling all over South America with his friend Alberto Granado, he was very disturbed by the poverty, sickness, and injustices he witnessed. These travels of his are written down in "The Motorcycle Diaries." He believed that these problems in South America existed because of monopoly capitalism, imperialism, and neocolonialism. In addition, he believed that the most sufficient solution to these problems was a world revolution. Guevara became even more radical in his beliefs after witnessing the coup d'état of Guatemala's government which was carried out by the United States government and CIA. Guatemala’s government was then replaced by a military junta, headed by Colonel Carlos Castillo. Che later met Raul and Fidel Castro while in Mexico City and decided to join their revolutionary group - the 26th of July Movement (named after the day of Fidel's failed attack on the Moncada barracks). They then boarded an old beat up yacht appropriately named the “Granma” and headed to Cuba to begin their revolution in an attempt to overthrow the U.S. backed dictator Fulgencio Batista.