Partido Independiente de Color

The Partido Independiente de Color (PIC) was a Cuban political party composed almost entirely of African former slaves. It was founded in 1908 by African veterans of the Cuban War of Independence. In 1912, the PIC led a revolt in the eastern province of Oriente. The revolt was crushed and the party disbanded. It is believedEsteban Montejo, subject of Miguel Barnets "Biografía de un cimarrón," was a member of this party, or had close associates who were.

The Partido Independiente de Color (PIC) in Cuba started after the Cuban War of Independence (a part of the Spanish–American War). It was composed largely of veterans from the war, specifically the officer corps. The party was started by Afro-Cubans in response to the mistreatment they received at the hands of the revolutionary government. This was a result of the feeling of white superiority in early 20th century Cuba. The PIC advocated free university education as well as other civil liberties for the Black community. This movement eventually culminated in an armed struggle called the Cuban Race War in which U.S. Marines took part. This they did under the Platt Amendment, which authorized unilateral intervention by the U.S. in Cuban affairs. The PIC and its inability to find a diplomatic solution to Cuban racism can help us understand the political strife Cuba suffered in the early 1900s.

The PIC was founded in 1908 by veterans from the Cuban Revolution. The Afro Cuban veterans felt the revolutionary Cuban government was mistreating them. Racist policies were being practiced in Cuba at the time including misrepresentation in the federal government of Afro Cubans. The PIC holds the distinction of being the first black political party in the western hemisphere.(Helg, 60) This is significant in view of the number of African Americans who were politically active at the time in the United States and elsewhere. Alin Helg would suggest that this is because Black people would conform to the white multi party system and support a candidate that didn’t have elitist views. By this logic the PIC was a radical new idea that involved building a new independent party. This had not been tried before due to the risk involved.

...
Wikipedia