(A) ** They saw it as a struggle for freedom similar to the American Revolution.
(B) Most Americans had family members living in Cuba.
(C) They believed it could end Spanish dreams of reconquering territory in America.
(D) Most Americans had experience of living under repressive Spanish rule.
EXPLANATIONS BELOW
Concept note-1: -they had millions of dollars invested in Cuban sugar plantations. Why did many Americans sympathize with the rebellion in Cuba against Spanish rule? They saw it as a struggle for freedom similar to the American Revolution.
Concept note-2: -The long-held U.S. interest in ridding the Western Hemisphere of European colonial powers and American public outrage over brutal Spanish tactics created much sympathy for the Cuban revolutionaries.
Concept note-3: -As with previous uprisings, Americans were largely sympathetic to the Cuban rebels’ cause, especially as the Spanish response was notably brutal. Evoking the same rhetoric of independence with which they fought the British during the American Revolution, several people quickly rallied to the Cuban fight for freedom.
Concept note-4: -On April 25, 1898, the United States government declared war on Spain due, in part, to America’s support of the ongoing struggle by Cubans and Filipinos against Spanish rule and the mysterious explosion of the battleship U.S.S. Maine in Havana Harbor.
Concept note-5: -The Cuban movement for independence from Spain in 1895 garnered considerable American support. When the USS Maine sank, the United States believed the tragedy was the result of Spanish sabotage and declared war on Spain.