Che Guevara

Ernesto "Che" Guevara, commonly known as el Che or Che (June 14, 1928 - October 9, 1967) was an Argentine Marxist, revolutionary, physician, author, guerrilla, diplomat, and military theorist. He is popular with socialists. In addition to that he was a writer and some of his articles and speeches were even published.

Ernesto Guevara
Che Guevara's iconic image
Born	Ernesto Guevara (1928-05-14)May 14, 1928 Rosario, Santa Fe, Argentina
Died	October 9, 1967(1967-10-09) (aged 39) La Higuera, Vallegrande, Bolivia

Che in Moscow (1965)

Time magazine said he was one of the most influential people of the 20th century. Guevara's face, with his thick black hair, scruffy beard and familiar beret, has been printed on T-shirts, walls and banners. Guerrillero Heroico, a picture of him, is called "the most famous photograph in the world."

Biography

Che Guevara was born in Rosario, Argentina in 1928. He studied at the University of Buenos Aires. He wanted to be a doctor. During his holidays, he traveled. He saw how poor some people were. He thought that revolution could fix it.

After college, he went to Mexico. He met Fidel Castro there in 1954. Castro was planning a rebellion in Cuba. Guevara joined Castro. He fought with Castro in Cuba. In 1959, Fidel won and became president of Cuba. Fidel and Guevara declared Cuba a communist country. Guevara was made head of Cuba's bank. He later became Minister of Industry. In 1965, Guevara helped to start other revolutions. They were in Congo-Kinshasa and Bolivia. In 1967, he was captured and executed by Bolivian soldiers. His body was not found until 1997. His nickname among friends was "Chegi Vara".

Che in popular culture

Graphic of Che, by Jim Fitzpatrick

People have different opinions on Che Guevara. Some see him as a good leader. In addition to that he was an excellent writer and some of his articles and speeches were even published. Others see him as a bad man who wanted to hurt people. A black and white image of Guevara's face is one of the most merchandized images. It can be found on many items. They include t-shirts, hats, posters, and other items. The image was based on a photograph by Alberto Korda Díaz. Díaz was a Cuban photographer. It was taken in 1960.

Guevara is still an important person. He is seen as an example of youthful rebellion.

A movie, ''The Motorcycle Diaries'', is about Che. It describes a trip that he took through South America. The trip took place in the 1950s. The movie was directed by Walter Salles. It was produced by Robert Redford.

Che Guevara Media

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  Ernesto Guevara. 1 año. 1929

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  A 5 year old Ernesto Guevara in 1933

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  Ernesto Guevara. Retrato. ca.1945

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  A map of Guevara's 1952 trip with Alberto Granado. Red arrows correspond to air travel.

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  Guevara (right) with Alberto Granado (left) in June 1952 on the Amazon River aboard their "Mambo-Tango" wooden raft, which was a gift from the lepers whom they had treated

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  A map of Che Guevara's travels between 1953 and 1956, including his journey aboard the Granma

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  Guevara with his first wife Hilda Gadea at Chichen Itza during their honeymoon trip

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  Journey of the yacht "Granma", from Mexico to Cuba

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  Granma survivors in the Sierra Maestra. Fidel Castro stands at center. Che Guevara stands second from left.

Other websites

• BBC News (January 17, 2001). "Profile: Laurent Kabila". Accessed April 10, 2008.
• BBC News (May 26, 2001). Che Guevara photographer dies. Accessed January 4, 2006.
• BBC News (October 9, 2007). "Cuba pays tribute to Che Guevara". BBC News, International version.
• Lacey, Mark (October 26, 2007). "Lone Bidder Buys Strands of Che's Hair at U.S. Auction". New York Times.
• Lacey, Mark (October 9, 2007). "A Revolutionary Icon, and Now, a Bikini". The New York Times.
• O'Hagan, Sean (July 11, 2004). "Just a pretty face?". The Guardian. Accessed October 25, 2006.