United Fruit Company and the Bay of Pigs

[Douglas Caddy]

1976 Facts on File, November 13, 1976

U.S. firm linked to Bay of Pigs raid

United Brands Co. of the U.S., then known as United Fruit Co., had actively participated in the 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba at the request of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, according to a book published Oct. 21.

The book, titled "An American Company: The Tragedy of United Fruit," was written by Thomas P. McCann, a former vice president of the firm. McCann said United Fruit had dealt directly with the late Robert F. Kennedy, then U.S. attorney general, in planning the Bay of Pigs invasion. The CIA's main contract at the firm was the late J. Arther Marquettee, then vice president in charge of steamships and terminal operations, McCann said.

McCann quoted Marquette as saying that Kennedy "wanted us to supply two of our freighters to convey men, munitions and material during that invasion. The arrangements were made, and it was all very cloak and dagger: our own board of directors didn't know about it, and certainly only a handful of us with the company were party to the secret."

After the abortive invasion, McCann said, the logs of the two ships were sent to Washington, sealed with was and then returned to the company. "As far as I know, they are still in company valuts -- the official record of our participation in that fiasco permanently safe from public view," McCann said.

Burke Wright, United Brands' current public relations director, said he was unable to find anyone in the company who knew about its participation in the invasion, the Miami Herald reported Oct. 23.

[Greg Burnham]

Although I am aware of United Fruit's involvement with the BOP invasion, I question the claim made by McCann that they dealt directly (or otherwise for that matter) with then Attorney General, Robert Kennedy, in "planning the Bay of Pigs Invasion."

Robert Kennedy was not among those who planned the BOP invasion. RFK was not tasked with CIA oversight until AFTER JFK forced Dulles to retire in the wake of the Report of the Cuban Study Group (The Taylor Report). Bobby was on that committee, which included, Allen Dulles, Admiral Arleigh Burke, and the recalled [Retired] General Maxwell Taylor.

United Fruit Company was always connected at the hip to the CIA.

To be clear, I repeat: Robert Kennedy was not involved in directly planning the Bay of Pigs invasion with United Fruit or anyone else.

Edited January 20, 2016 by Greg Burnham

[Douglas Caddy]

Greg: I recently received a letter from Mr. MCann who wrote to me because he learned from the internet that we shared a common friend, the late newspaper columnist Alice Widener. In the1950s he was a frequent dinner guest as Alice's dinner parties in her NYC coop on Park Avenue where he wrote that he met General Leslie Groves, Senator George Malone, Edith Kermit Roosevelt, Cartha DeLoach and many prominent business people.

United Fruit Company was a financial supporter of USA, Alice's magazine. I had an article published in USA on George Kennan when I was an undergraduate at Georgetown University.

I plan on responding to Mr. McCann's letter shortly and will inquire further about any contact Robert Kennedy may have had with United Fruit Company as part of the Bay of Pigs invasion.

[Greg Burnham]

Thanks Doug.

This particular claim bears the stench of disinformation. To wit: It appears that it could be post mortem character assassination by connecting RFK to the ill-fated decision making process...when he, in fact, had "many other fish to fry" more in line with his expertise in the Justice Department at that point of the JFK Presidency.

[Douglas Caddy]

Greg:

I received a letter dated January 27, 2016, from Thomas P. McCann in response to one I had written to him. In relevant part it reads, "I could not tell from your letter if you read my American Company book but you might have. The fact that RFK came to Boston and negotiated for two ships for the Bay of Pigs invasion is in it revealed for the first time. About six months after publication I got a call from a reporter on the Washington Post who had just realized the company's involvement was "new news" and he made a story out of it much to the displeasure of a lot of people. Our VP in charge of steamship operations really disliked RFK. The fellow who later hand delivered the ship logs to Washington was a good friend of mine -- died a few years ago."

Here are some reviews of Thomas P. McCann's book, American Company:

"...a remarkable tale...compelling...a very personal relevant, occasionally poignant tale of the humanness of a seemingly inhuman corporate world." -- The New York Times

"McCann is an excellent story teller and this corporate history is probably as reliable as any written." -- Business Week

"...a sensitive, though sometimes critical, account of the company....even non-Bostonians may feel regrets for what happened to this grand old company." -- The Harvard Business Review

The book was published by Crown Publishers in 1976. So the Washington Post story likely appeared in 1976 or 1977.

Doug

Edited February 5, 2016 by Douglas Caddy

[Greg Burnham]

Thanks for the follow up, Doug. I don't know if there's any truth to his claim regarding RFK negotiating for two ships or not, but I never heard of it before. And, even if that was true, it certainly does not constitute RFK "planning the Bay of Pigs invasion" with United Fruit.

[Michael Clark]

From Wikipedia....

John Foster Dulles, who represented United Fruit while he was a law partner at Sullivan & Cromwell – he negotiated that crucial United Fruit deal with Guatemalan officials in the 1930s – was Secretary of State under Eisenhower; his brother Allen, who did legal work for the company and sat on its board of directors, was head of the CIA under Eisenhower; Henry Cabot Lodge, who was America's ambassador to the UN, was a large owner of United Fruit stock; Ed Whitman, the United Fruit PR man, was married to Ann Whitman, Dwight Eisenhower's personal secretary. You could not see these connections until you could – and then you could not stop seeing them.^[6]

^{------------------}

So, when the BOP was being planned, 

John Dulles was Secretary of State. Until April of 1959

Allen Dulles was CIA Director.

Henry Cabot Lodge was former Massachusetts Senator and Ambassador to the UN until 1960.

And somebody sends The Presidents brother, The Attorney General, to Boston to see if he could scare up a couple of banana boats for a CIA operation?

Cheers,

Michael