Called by Fidel Castro to be the largest sugar harvest in Cuban history and carried out by a nationwide force of nearly half a million unpaid (“volunteer”) workers, the Ten Million Ton Harvest of 1970 brought Cuba’s economic development to a grinding halt. Although they produced eight million tons—a historic record, the human cost workers paid demoralized them for years to come. Nonetheless, this stamp claimed the opposite: “The people have unleashed a great battle… The people have realized a formidable effort. …The fruits of this effort shall stand as an historic achievement.” Eduardo “Guayo” Hernández Collection, Smathers Libraries, University of Florida
