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Episode details

World Service,19 Oct 2022,9 mins

The ‘army’ that taught Cuba to read and write

Witness History

Available for over a year

In 1961, Fidel Castro launched a nationwide campaign aimed to eradicate illiteracy in Cuba. An ‘army’ of volunteers known as brigadistas equipped with books and pencils travelled across the country to teach people how to read and write. Alex Collins spoke to Rosa Hernandez Acosta who taught many adults even though she was a 10-year-old schoolgirl herself. (Photo: Rosa Hernandez Acosta. Credit: Kian Seara)

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