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The Story of Benny “Kid” Paret: Cuban Boxers, the Cuban Revolution, and the U.S. Media, 1959–1962
- Journal of Sport History
- North American Society for Sport History
- Volume 38, Number 1, Spring 2011
- pp. 95-113
- Article
- Additional Information
This article examines the personal life history and professional boxing career of Afro-Cuban boxer Benny “Kid” Paret between 1959 and 1962. Paret died nine days after suffering a brutal beating in the ring at the hands of Emile Griffith, and this article focuses on the public discourse surrounding his death in the context of strained U.S.-Cuba relations, increased Cuban migration to the United States after 1959, and race and ethnic identity formation. Using major U.S. newspapers, magazines, and boxing periodicals as well as African-American and Spanish-language newspapers, this article contributes to a growing body of literature on Latino/as, race, and sport.