Editor-in-Chief
Since its inception, the United States has taken an active role in foreign affairs. Central to this activity is an ongoing crusade to prevent the spread of communism largely due to its ideological opposition to capitalism. Given this cause, the U.S. came into conflict with the Republic of Cuba’s communist government quite quickly. In the 1960s, President Kennedy imposed an embargo that blocked almost all goods and trade to the people of Cuba. This embargo still stands, and President Trump harshened its effects in 2017 and 2025, demonstrating his commitment to economic sanctions. The United States should halt its embargo on the Republic of Cuba due to its ineffectiveness and the immense harm inflicted to the people the government claims to protect.
While there are multiple problems with the embargo, the primary issue is its practical efficacy. Time and time again, economic sanctions have proven ineffective in crippling a government’s power while at the same time, destroying its citizens’ financial freedom. This combination creates a perfect environment for authoritarianism to creep in. An example of this is found in Iran, which remains one of the most heavily sanctioned countries on the globe. An article from Johns Hopkins University stated, “Rather than hurting the Iranian regime leaders, sanctions have strengthened the Iranian state and military…hurting the exact people they’re supposed to help—the middle class.” Instead of freeing Iran’s people from a harmful regime, the Iranian embargo isolates them economically, crippling their agency. Iran is far from the only example of this phenomenon.
The same article noted, “Since 1970, unilateral sanctions imposed by the U.S. have achieved foreign policy goals in just about 13% of cases.” There is no better example of this than Cuba. There are undeniably issues with the Cuban government’s record on human rights, but a blanket system in which suffering people are punished while those inflicting that punishment claim to ease their pain is unacceptable. As the richest country in the history of the world, the U.S. has a unique ability to help so many lift themselves from horrible circumstances, and yet it squanders that chance to prioritize political leanings over the people’s well being.
United Nations (UN) voting makes the moral abhorrency of the embargo plainly clear. 165 countries supported a resolution to stop the United States’ sanctions on Cuba this year with just seven voting against and 12 abstaining. This makes it the 33rd consecutive year the UN has passed the resolution.
The U.S. government’s actions have had a decidedly negative effect on this situation. Cubans are currently experiencing an extreme energy crisis which affects everything from medical procedures to food and water scarcity while atoning for crimes they did not commit.
The United States government must halt its embargo on the Republic of Cuba. It is ineffective, targeting the citizens of Cuba rather than the government, and overall crippling the country’s well being.
(Sources: Johns Hopkins University, Miami Herald, US Department of State)
Categories: Opinion