The Making of Modern Cuba
The Aspen Institute Socrates Program held the seminar, “The Making of Modern Cuba,” in Havana where Socrates participants were joined by local Cuban scholars to discuss and explore the political, economic and social factors shaping modern Cuba. In addition to roundtable seminars, Socrates attendees met with distinguished guests including several ambassadors to Cuba. Participants also had the opportunity to visit museums, meet with local artists, and enjoy Cuban music and shows. The week began with an opening program in Miami, Florida on May 1.
The Making of Modern Cuba
May 1-5, 2012
Havana, Cuba
Cuba’s revolution in 1959 was the culmination of the island’s struggle for national independence and sovereignty, a struggle that began more than a century before. This seminar will look at the political and economic forces that have shaped modern Cuba in the decades leading up to the revolution of 1959, and the years since. Among the goals of the 1959 revolution, we will consider Cuba’s pursuit of social justice through socialism, its assertion of independence from the influence of the United States, and its efforts to play a leading international role in Latin America and the third world generally. We will pay special attention to the challenges Cuba faces in the contemporary period since the dismantling of the Soviet Union.
Moderators: William LeoGrande, dean of the American University School of Public Affairs and expert on Latin American politics; Margaret Crahan, senior fellow, Center for the Study of Democracy, Toleration and Religion; and research scholar at the Institute for Latin American Studies at the School of International Public Affairs, Columbia University; with Elliot Gerson, Executive Vice President of Policy and Public Programs, International Partners, the Aspen Institute
