I've always thought of Cubans as a model for freedom fighters, even during the Spanish American war...Jose Marti and the like. Certainly there are many aspects of their society that western society cannot denounce as disadvantageous: healthcare and education programs in Cuba have a social character that has not been replicated in the US, for example. I was able to read an article detailing the effects of the US embargo on Cuba from a youth newspaper , their website is
http://www.juventudrebelde.cu/ . Although Cuba has had its own fair share of criticism, I think that despite everything there is *something* there.