 Returning to Cuba , Castro became a prominent figure in protests against the government ’ s attempts to raise bus fares , a mode of transport used mostly by students and workers . That year , Castro married Mirta Díaz Balart , a student from a wealthy family through whom he was exposed to the lifestyle of the Cuban elite . The relationship was a love match , disapproved of by both families . Mirta ’ s father gave them tens of thousands of dollars to spend in a three @-@ month honeymoon in New York City , and the couple also received a U.S. $ 1 @,@ 000 wedding gift from the military general and former president Fulgencio Batista , a friend of Mirta ’ s family . That same year , Grau decided not to stand for re @-@ election , which was instead won by his Partido Auténtico 's new candidate , Carlos Prío Socarrás . Prío faced widespread protests when members of the MSR , now allied to the police force , assassinated Justo Fuentes , a self @-@ educated black Cuban who was a prominent UIR member and friend of Castro 's . In response , Prío agreed to quell the gangs , but found them too powerful to control . 
