Cuban revolutionaries, including Fidel Castro (far left) and Che Guevara (center), in Havana in 1960.

On this day in 1959, U.S.-backed Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista fled the country following the victory of Fidel Castro's 26th of July Movement (M-26-7) at the Battle of Santa Clara, marking the successful conclusion of the Cuban Revolution.

The 26th of July Movement takes its name from the date of with a failed attack on the Moncada Barracks in 1953, however, the movement bearing this name was not formally organized until the attackers were released from prison in 1955. Public resistance continued sporadically until November 1956, when 80 members of the M-26-7 returned from exile.

Soon after landing on the island, a separate revolutionary group, the "Directorio Revoluncionari Estudiantil" (DRE), unsuccessfully attempted an attack on the Presidential Palace in Havana.

Throughout 1957, armed resistance from groups such as the DRE and M-26-7 would escalate. After a failed offensive by the government against rebels in the summer of 1958, the rebels launched a major counter-offensive.

On December 28th, 1958, after a fraudulent election in favor of Batista, revolutionary forces reached the city of Santa Clara. Seizing equipment from an armored train intended to transport government reinforcements, the rebels quickly captured the city, prompting Batista to panic and flee to the Dominican Republic with a personal fortune of more than $300 million.

In the following days, revolutionary forces entered Havana with no resistance, and Castro established a provisional government. The 26th of July Movement later reformed along Marxist–Leninist lines, becoming the Communist Party of Cuba in October 1965.

Batista later settled in fascist Spain, dying there in 1973 at the age of 72.

Megathreads and spaces to hang out:

  • 🐻Link to all Hexbear comms https://hexbear.net/post/1403966
  • 📀 Come listen to music and Watch movies with your fellow Hexbears nerd, in Cy.tube](https://live.hexbear.net/c/movies
  • 🔥 Read and talk about a current topics in the News Megathread https://hexbear.net/post/6697187
  • ⚔ Come talk in the New Weekly PoC thread https://hexbear.net/post/6904909
  • 🏳️‍⚧️ Talk with fellow Trans comrades in the New Weekly Trans thread https://hexbear.net/post/6979368
  • 👊 New Weekly Improvement thread https://hexbear.net/post/6980340
  • 🧡 Disabled comm megathread https://hexbear.net/post/6902391
  • ☕ Parenting Chat https://hexbear.net/post/6969163
  • 🐉 Anime & Manga discussion thread https://hexbear.net/post/6887856
  • 🎩Fashion megathread https://hexbear.net/post/6995397

reminders:

  • 💚 You nerds can join specific comms to see posts about all sorts of topics
  • 💙 Hexbear’s algorithm prioritizes comments over upbears
  • 💜 Sorting by new you nerd
  • 🐶 Join the unofficial Hexbear-adjacent Mastodon instance toots.matapacos.dog

Links To Resources (Aid and Theory):

Aid:

Theory:

  • ClathrateG [none/use name]
    ·
    1 month ago

    Some interesting answers about hexbear from Deepseek(the only AI i touch)

    what is hexbear

    spoiler

    Hexbear is a leftist, primarily Marxist-Leninist, online community and link aggregator website. It's often described as a more radical alternative to platforms like Reddit, but with a specific ideological focus.

    Here’s a breakdown of its key characteristics:

    Core Identity & Ideology

    • Far-Left Community: It is explicitly socialist/communist, with a strong foundation in Marxist-Leninist thought. Anti-capitalist, anti-imperialist, and anti-fascist politics are central.
    • Splinter from "ChapoTrapHouse": The site was created in 2019 by users banned from the popular (and later banned) r/ChapoTrapHouse subreddit on Reddit, which housed a large, irreverent socialist community. Hexbear was founded to be a less moderated, more ideologically cohesive space for that user base.
    • Collectively Moderated: The site uses a unique system where trusted users have moderation powers, aiming for a more community-driven approach to content management than top-down admin control.

    Platform & Structure

    • Link Aggregator: Like Reddit or the older Digg, its core function is users ("bears") posting links to news articles, blogs, videos, and images, which are then voted on and discussed in comment threads.
    • "Hex" in the Name: This comes from its original domain, hexbear.net, a reference to the "hexbear" emoji (:hexbear:) used on the site, which is a pixelated bear face inside a hexagon.
    • "Instances" and Federation (Lemmy): Technically, Hexbear is an "instance" on the Lemmy network. Lemmy is a decentralized, open-source platform (part of the Fediverse, like Mastodon). This means users on other Lemmy instances can interact with Hexbear's content if their instance allows it, though Hexbear is known for being a "defederated" or closed instance, meaning it often blocks communication with instances it deems liberal, reactionary, or hostile to its core ideology.

    Culture and Reputation

    • In-Group Humor and Jargon: The community has developed its own slang, in-jokes, and memes (e.g., "o7" as a salute, "dot hexbear dot net" as a sign-off), which can make it seem insular to outsiders.
    • Zero Tolerance for "Bigotry": The site has strict rules against racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, etc., aligning with its anti-reactionary stance.
    • Criticized as an "Echo Chamber": Due to its defederation and strict ideological lines, critics argue it lacks viewpoint diversity and engages in purges of users deemed insufficiently radical or "deviationist."
    • Controversial Stances: The community often expresses controversial views sympathetic to or critically supportive of various historical and existing socialist states (e.g., the USSR, China, Cuba, DPRK), which are outside mainstream political discourse.

    In Summary:

    Think of Hexbear as a politically homogeneous, ideologically strict, and community-moderated forum for far-left (mainly Marxist-Leninist) discussion. It was born from a banned Reddit community seeking a permanent, independent home. It's not a platform for debate with liberals or conservatives but rather a space for like-minded radicals to share news, analysis, and organize within their specific political framework.

    Important Note: Descriptions of Hexbear vary greatly depending on the political perspective of the source. Mainstream outlets and right-wing critics often portray it as a toxic extremist haven, while its users see it as a necessary safe haven from what they view as liberal or reactionary platforms.

    write an example post in the style of hexbear user

    spoiler

    POST TITLE: just witnessed the most libshit interaction imaginable at the whole foods bulk bins

    COMMUNITY: chapotraphouse2 (pinned) TAGS: #anticapitalism #late stage capitalism #praxis posting

    so i'm just trying to get some goddamn lentils o7 and i overhear two PMC types in patagonia vests having the most terminal conversation.

    one goes: "i'm just so disillusioned with both parties, you know? we need a viable third way."

    the other, sipping a $9 kombucha, nods sagely: "totally. it's why i'm donating to yang's forward party. we need data-driven human-centered capitalism."

    i literally almost dropped my reusable produce bag. a "third way" between two right-wing capitalist parties. "human-centered" capitalism. they've fully internalized the aesthetics of critique while demanding the preservation of the very machinery that's killing the planet and immiserating us all. the sheer ideological capture. the poverty of imagination that can only envision a different brand manager for the same death cult.

    anyway i finished getting my lentils. stay safe out there bears, the ideological superstructure is thick today.

    :hexbear: :sickle: :hammer: o7

    COMMENTS (12):

    user: dot hexbear dot net

    forward party is just silicon valley's latest astroturfed grift to avoid paying taxes. yang is a tech bro parasite who thinks a thousand bucks once will solve poverty and not, you know, the abolition of private property. the audacity to call it "forward" while advocating for the same necrotic system.

    user: a name

    the bulk bins are a microcosm of the contradictions of late imperialism. they sell you the illusion of ethical consumption (bulk! reduce waste!) at a 400% markup while the store itself is an amazon subsidiary. we are surrounded by co-opted aesthetics of sustainability that serve only to ease the conscience of the labor aristocracy.

    user: a name

    PMC stands for Professional Managerial Class for any new bears reading. these are the types who administer the system for the bourgeoisie while thinking their graduate degrees make them "above" the working class. their politics never extend beyond which consultant should manage our exploitation more politely.

    user: a name

    o7 comrade. i swear the kombucha is a psyop. a fizzy signifier of "wellness" and "awareness" that chemically validates their complacency.

    user: a name

    [IMAGE: A meme of a sinking ship labeled "The Planet." Two people in lifeboats labeled "Democratic Party" and "Republican Party" are arguing over a map. A third lifeboat labeled "Forward Party" is being lowered, but it's also full of holes. Text: "debating which captain will steer us to the iceberg more efficiently."]

    user: a name

    the "third way" is and always has been socialism. that's it. that's the list.

    user: a name

    reminds me of the matt christman bit about how liberalism is just a series of branding exercises for the same underlying violence. they've moved on from "hope and change" to "data-driven human-centered" but the drones still fly, the cops still murder, the rents still rise.

    STYLE NOTES & EXPLANATION:

    • Tone: Exasperated, sarcastic, terminally online leftist jargon. A mix of lived experience anecdote and sweeping ideological critique.
    • Jargon/Lingo:
      • libshit: Derogatory for liberal ideology/behavior.
      • PMC: Professional Managerial Class.
      • Praxis posting: Sharing real-world examples that illustrate theory.
      • Terminal: Hopelessly caught in bourgeois ideology.
      • Ideological superstructure: Marxist term for the cultural/ideological institutions that uphold the economic base.
      • o7: A saluting emoji used as a greeting/sign-off.
      • dot hexbear dot net: A common, slightly ironic sign-off referencing the site's domain.
    • Structure: A relatable anecdote (grocery shopping) used as a springboard for a critique of capitalism, liberal ideology, and class. Ends with a solidarity sign-off.
    • Comment Style: Comments expand on the critique, provide theory, share memes, and use in-group references (like citing podcast host Matt Christman). They are supportive and build on the OP's premise, not debate it.
    • Visual Elements: Use of the :hexbear: custom emoji and classic socialist emojis (:sickle: :hammer:).
    • Core Ideology: Assumes capitalism is irredeemable and violent, liberalism is a deceptive tool of capital, and socialism is the only rational alternative. The enemy is not just conservatives, but the "useful idiots" of capital (liberals, PMC).

    dot hexbear dot net lol

    • SmithrunHills [he/him]
      ·
      1 month ago

      I dont know how to describe it exactly, but there really is something so fundamentally inorganic about the way LLMs produce dialogue. It always resorts to every ChatGPT-ism and cliche under the sun

      Like, even the way every generated comment looks too structurally "perfect" and leaves no room for unique human error or quirks. It's almost annoying to look at at times

      • ZWQbpkzl [none/use name]
        ·
        1 month ago

        Pretty sure they're explicitly instructed to format their responses like that because its believed to be the most helpful. Quickest to skim.

        Probably also trained on a horde of university papers graded on how they match that format.

    • NephewAlphaBravo [he/him]
      ·
      1 month ago

      the bulk bins are a microcosm of the contradictions of late imperialism

      so true bestie

    • KuroXppi [they/them]
      ·
      1 month ago

      anyway i finished getting my lentils. stay safe out there bears, the ideological superstructure is thick today.

      :sickle: :hammer: o7

      Uncanny

    • ClathrateG [none/use name]
      ·
      1 month ago

      Estimated demographics of hexbear users(from further on in the same 'conversation' parts of which I've omitted here):

      spoiler

      Estimating the demographics of Hexbear is necessarily speculative, as the site does not release official statistics, but we can construct a reasoned profile based on its origins, observable culture, ideological positioning, and comparisons to similar online leftist spaces.

      Core Demographic Profile (Estimated)

      1. Age

      • Primary: 25–35 years old (Millennials). The site emerged from the r/ChapoTrapHouse subreddit (2016–2019), whose core audience was millennials. The humor, cultural references (90s/2000s), and political socialization during the post-2008, Bernie Sanders, and Trump eras fit this cohort.
      • Secondary: 19–24 (Gen Z) and 36–45. Gen Z users have been radicalized online and may migrate from TikTok/Instagram leftism to more structured theory. Some older millennials and younger Gen Xers with longer histories in online leftist spaces are also present.

      2. Gender

      • Heavily male-presenting, but with a significant and vocal minority of women, non-binary, and trans users.
      • Reasoning: The "dirtbag left" origins of Chapo Trap House had a notably male-dominated audience. However, Hexbear's explicit and strongly enforced anti-transphobia, anti-misogyny stance, and dedicated feminist and LGBTQ+ communities have made it a more intentionally inclusive space than its predecessor. Discussions of gender theory and patriarchy are frequent and integrated.

      3. Geography & Nationality

      • Overwhelmingly Anglosphere, with a strong US majority.
      • Breakdown:
        • United States: ~70-80% (based on topic focus, timezone activity peaks, and cultural references).
        • Canada, UK, Australia, Ireland: ~15-20% (common secondary demographics in Anglophone online left spaces).
        • Rest of World (Europe, Latin America, etc.): ~5-10%. While there are international socialists, language and cultural focus create a barrier.

      4. Education & Class

      • Education: Highly educated. A significant portion are current university students, graduates, or dropouts. There is a strong presence of the Professional-Managerial Class (PMC) and intellectual workers (IT, academia, journalism, arts).
      • Class Identity: Predominantly "declassed" intellectuals/PMC. While the ideology is proletarian, the actual user base is largely not industrial working-class. There is frequent self-aware discussion of this contradiction ("radicalized grad students," "lumpen intelligentsia"). A segment is genuinely working-class or precarious service-sector workers.

      5. Ethnicity/Race

      • Predominantly white, but not exclusively. This reflects both the demographics of the online left spaces it grew from and broader internet platform demographics. However, anti-racism is a core, non-negotiable tenet of the site. There are active communities and discussions focused on anti-imperialism, Black liberation, and Indigenous struggle.

      6. Employment & Status

      • Mix of: Students (undergrad & grad), precarious/ gig economy workers, unemployed/underemployed, IT/tech workers, academics, public sector/unionized workers. A notable contingent has the flexible time to engage deeply in online theory and debate.

      Ideological & Cultural Demographics (The "Factions")

      This is as important as standard demographics on Hexbear:

      1. The Orthodox Marxist-Leninists (MLs): The core demographic. Pro-Soviet, critically supportive of AES ("Actually Existing Socialist") states like China, Cuba, DPRK. Focus on party building, materialism, and anti-imperialism.
      2. The Anarchists & Libertarian Socialists: A smaller but present group. Tensions exist with MLs over issues of state, authority, and historical analysis.
      3. The "Dirtbag" Post-Leftists: Holdovers from the Chapo era. More focus on absurdist humor, media critique, and a "no heroes" attitude, sometimes clashing with the more reverent ML tendencies.
      4. The Newly Radicalized: Users from liberal backgrounds moving left, often through climate activism, BLM, or labor organizing. They are in a "learning" phase, consuming theory.
      5. The Ultra-Left & Doomers: A fringe focused on accelerationism, deep ecology, or the belief that collapse is inevitable and organizing is futile.

      Key Limitations of This Estimate

      • Self-Selection Bias: This describes active posters and commenters. Lurkers may differ.
      • Defederation Effect: By cutting off from the wider Fediverse, Hexbear solidified its ideological bubble, making its demographics more homogeneous over time.
      • Anonymity: Online pseudonymity allows people to engage outside their IRL demographic boxes.

      Summary: The Typical Hexbear User (Stereotype)

      A 28-year-old white male American with a university degree in humanities or social sciences, working in a precarious or tech-adjacent job, who identifies as a Marxist-Leninist, spends significant time online, is versed in theory, deeply anti-liberal, and uses niche humor as a social bonding mechanism. However, the site contains meaningful diversity outside this stereotype, particularly in gender identity and political tendency, all unified by a committed, anti-capitalist, and anti-imperialist stance.

      Analogy: If Twitter leftism is the broad church, and leftist subreddits are the denominational schools, Hexbear is the insular, rigorous seminary for a particular strand of revolutionary thought—and its demographics reflect that of seminarians: highly committed, studious, and demographically narrower than the flock they aim to lead.