I F Stone

Society

The spirit of Che Guevara

• 20 September 2007

Taken from The New Statesman 20th October, 1967 Next month marks the 40th anniversary of Che Guevara’s execution at the hands of the CIA and the Bolivian army. The 39-year-old Che was, at the time of his death, already an icon and a legend to a generation of young, revolutionary romantics across the world. But this incisive appraisal by the radical American journalist I F Stone recognised that, while Che’s influence would be lasting, his commitment to change through violence was perilous to his cause.