Audioslave, the supergroup featuring Soundgarden‘s Chris Cornell and members of Rage Against the Machine, reunited onstage for the first time in nearly 12 years Friday night at the Anti-Inaugural Ball concert in Los Angeles. More
Tom Morello defended late Cuban president Fidel Castro’s legacy in a lengthy social media post where the Rage Against the Machine guitarist praised the controversial leader.
“While I don’t agree with all that Fidel Castro did there is ample reason why he is vilified in the US and yet remains a huge hero throughout the Third World,” Morello wrote.
The Prophets of Rage mastermind then listed Castro’s lesser-publicized achievements: “By defying Yankee imperialism for 50 years, instituting the best healthcare, child immunization and literacy systems in the Western Hemisphere (surpassing the US and Canada), exporting doctors to countries in need all over the globe (the Bush administration turned down his offer to send medical teams to New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina), and being an unrepentant advocate of the poor and exploited it is no surprise that millions will mourn his passing.”
Morello, with Audioslave, became the first U.S. rock band to perform in Cuba when they staged a free Havana concert in 2005; Morello’s previous band Rage Against the Machine often employed iconography and philosophies from Castro’s friend and fellow revolutionary Che Guevara during their tenure.
“That experience will be one I will always treasure,” Morello…