Who is facundo bacardi

He also returned with a clearer understanding of the division in Santiago with those who considered themselves Spaniards and supported slavery and the Crown. The liberals argued for civil rights, opposed Spanish despotism, held secular values and favored sovereignty for Cuba, if not complete independence — all irreconcilable differences.

Towards the end of 19th century, Cuba began its battle for independence from Spain. Emilio was the first Cuban born of the family and his rebellions included running an underground paper he and some friends published in defiance of censorship, as well as his fighting in the rebel army against Spain. The Cubans had to deal with the issue of race before staging a full revolt. Blacks were in the majority and that kept many white Cubans from pushing for independence. They feared without Spanish colonial authority behind them, they would lose their privileged place in the country.

Blacks and whites did not freely mix in the s, but the color lines were not as sharp as in the southern United States, because slaves could purchase their freedom in Cuba. The first Cuban war for independence began in when a plantation owner, Carlos Manuel de Cespedes, freed his slaves and invited them to join him and arm themselves against the Spanish military. From this moment on, you are as free as I am.

To win its independence and freedom, Cuba needs every one of its sons. Those of you who want to follow me, follow. Those who want to stay here, stay. Everyone will be equally free. Many were poorly dressed and armed with machetes. Independicia o muerte! Independence or death!

Emilito would recall meeting him was the most emotional moment of his life. For a true revolutionary, racism was not just wrong; it was unpatriotic. Cubre Libre was to be a land governed by Cubans, for all Cubans. Soon Facundo Sr. As a result of these creations, four different and outstanding rum variations emerged: The Facundo Eximo is presented in an aromatic variation of caramel, walnut, and toffee.

The Facundo Neo reveals itself in a fruity note, with a fine hint of almond and vanilla. Close menu. Now 50, he has been chairman of the board of Bermuda-based Bacardi Limited since and a director since He spoke with Reuters to share some of the life lessons he has learned from his family - and the family business - over the years. Q: What did growing up watching the family business teach you about finances? A: In , the entire family left Cuba because all of their assets were appropriated by the Cuban government.

The family had to come together and rebuild the company. There are no rights. I can speak for my family in saying that the overriding goal when it comes to Cuba is to have an open and free society. So what do you have? You have Cuba, which went from a very hard-line stance under Fidel, to Raul, who is taking baby steps.

The society is slowly opening up a bit, and there are reforms. So long as reforms continue, the people who benefit the most are the Cuban people. Every country does things at its own pace, and Cuba is no different. The question is, will Raul go all the way, or not? SHANKEN: There are a number of people who feel that ending the embargo would only accelerate the creation of an open society, because people could then own property, get jobs and export products.

Cuban society would prosper, and that would be good for the Cuban people. The dictatorship portion is the past, not the future. Those claims have to be worked out before anybody goes in there and starts buying land. In Eastern Europe, for example, there has been a process to deal with such claims. The idea that you could go down and buy land in Cuba is, frankly, unrealistic.

This is one of the reforms that Raul Castro has implemented—allowing people to buy. We live in a world in which we as Americans have a view as to how our society should be. That connotes a certain uniqueness. We have people who are in the eighth generation.

So my great-great-grandfather is a great-great-grandfather to everybody in the fifth generation. I have a brother, a sister and many cousins who share the same great-great-grandfather. How did that happen? Your vision reflects a unified approach by the broader family. Recall that until , Bacardi was comprised of five independently operating companies.

In that year, we reorganized under a Bermuda-based holding company structure. The family members at the helm were always very good—making everyone understand they were working for the Bacardi family.