Abstract:
José Martí’s first visit to Tampa in November 1891 surpassed his expectations and set in motion
the process that would lead to the creation of the Cuban Revolutionary Party, an organization
that was able to unite the Cuban independence movement around a program that imagined
political independence as the first step toward the founding of a free, democratic, working class
republic dedicated to social justice. The patriotic atmosphere and the level of social cohesion
among the Cuban immigrant community of Tampa increased after Martí’s first visit to the city, in
large part due to their identification with the principles outlined in his speeches “With All and For
the Good of All” and “The New Pines.” The writing of the “Tampa Resolutions,” which were
conceived, discussed and approved by the Cuban immigrants of this city, represents the moment
when Martí emerges as the undisputed leader of the Cuban revolutionary movement and the
one charged with forging the image of an ideal republic that would respond to the deepest
aspiration of the Cuban people. The principles that Martí communicated during his first visit to
Tampa, and which modeled the future republic he hoped to create, became from then on the
foundation of the model patria that continues to frame and inspire the political discourse among
Cubans both on and off the island nation.