Monday October 2, 2023
  • Venezuela
  • Mexico
  • Colombia
  • Chile
  • Brazil
  • Argentina
  • Podcast
Versión Español
PanAm Post
  • Home
  • Regions
    • South America
    • North America
    • Central America
    • Caribbean
  • Politics
  • Economics
  • Opinion
  • Podcast
  • Authors
  • Contact
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Regions
    • South America
    • North America
    • Central America
    • Caribbean
  • Politics
  • Economics
  • Opinion
  • Podcast
  • Authors
  • Contact
No Result
View All Result
PanAm Post
No Result
View All Result

Home » Cuba’s Rise and Fall in Half an Hour

Cuba’s Rise and Fall in Half an Hour

Fergus Hodgson by Fergus Hodgson
September 24, 2014
in Caribbean, Cuba, Opinion, Review, Society, Video
FacebookTwitterTelegramWhatsapp

Español Few if any nonprofits have supported my intellectual development to the degree of the Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies (ICCAS). Nestled on the University of Miami campus, their media footprint, publications, and on-site events demonstrate exemplary productivity.

Available directly from the Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies. (PanAm Post)
The documentary is available on Amazon, with updated narration by Andy García. (PanAm Post)

Late in 2013, I completed their Certificate in Cuban Studies, under the direction of José Azel, and got to interact with the most prominent Cuban dissidents of our era. That included Huber Matos (recently deceased), a general-turned-defector from the 1959 revolution, and Yoani Sánchez, a blogger and author who has now started a digital-media outlet on the island, 14ymedio.

RelatedArticles

The night Chris Rock turned into a 12-year-old whiny bully victim

The night Chris Rock turned into a 12-year-old whiny bully victim

March 26, 2023
The new socialist supremacisms: a maoist cultural revolution undermines the US

The new socialist supremacisms: a maoist cultural revolution undermines the US

August 21, 2021

The tragedy is that so few people draw on this invaluable resource. Even with the intellectual firepower on offer, their certificate program could barely attract a dozen students. Perhaps it is just a symptom of the aging exile community and less interest among their descendants, but if you’re under 50 and attend one of the Casa Bacardi events, you will be the “young man” in the room.

While the ICCAS focus remains on substance over style — their websites could sure do with a redesign — they are making efforts to reach out to new audiences and offer educational tours. One recent addition is a short English-language documentary, Cuba: From Columbus to Castro.

Written by Pedro Riog and Jaime Suchlicki, author of a book with the same title, this one will not win any prizes for production value. It is primarily image stills, many of them of low resolution, alongside straight narration from retired professor Frank Rodríguez.

As its brevity suggests (25 minutes), it is meant for the newcomer — a concise yet authoritative overview of the Cuban story. Given so much ground to cover and a rapid pace, one can be forgiven for rewinding to properly digest many of its assertions.

The documentary’s value lies in conveying the breadth of the Cuban story, in particular the level of refinement and economic progress achieved on the island prior to the purported quest for a socialist paradise. It explains why, even after all these decades, so many still reminisce and grieve the bygone nation.

In its final few minutes, as it addresses the most recent years, Rodríguez explains why 1.5 million Cuban nationals (approximately 15 percent of the population) live outside their mother country. Contrary to common perception, the rulers of the Cuban regime have not relinquished to liberalization, not even in the manner of the Chinese.

In fact, as affirmed, militarization and repression on the island are getting worse, not better. People still risk their lives trying to flee to Florida, many falling victim to the sea. And the regime’s desire for international clout remains, now on the purse of the Venezuelans, since the breakup of the Soviet Union.

“Cubans are still living in poverty,” Rodríguez says. “There’s still no freedom nor human rights; and Cuba remains a military dictatorship.”

If you are new to the topic and willing to take a dose of bleak reality, you could hardly do better than From Columbus to Castro. If anything, it will help viewers understand the exile community and motivate them to support the struggle to reclaim their homeland from the tyrants at the helm.

Update: 8 a.m. EDT, March 12, 2015.

Tags: cuba: from columbus to castroexilesInstitute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies (ICCAS)
Fergus Hodgson

Fergus Hodgson

Fergus Hodgson was the founding editor in chief of the PanAm Post, up until January 2016. Follow @FergHodgson and his Facebook page.

Related Posts

The night Chris Rock turned into a 12-year-old whiny bully victim
Columnists

The night Chris Rock turned into a 12-year-old whiny bully victim

March 26, 2023
The new socialist supremacisms: a maoist cultural revolution undermines the US
Columnists

The new socialist supremacisms: a maoist cultural revolution undermines the US

August 21, 2021
GETTR: the powerful weapon of Trump and international right wing
United States

GETTR: the powerful weapon of Trump and international right wing

July 13, 2021
Three Signs That Elon Musk Has the World at His Fingertips
Columnists

Trump Against Suppression of Human Rights

February 1, 2021
Argentina: Five Steakhouses in Buenos Aires You Don’t Want to Miss
Society

Argentina: Five Steakhouses in Buenos Aires You Don’t Want to Miss

January 21, 2021
Families, Not the Government, Should Regulate Big Tech
Analysis

Families, Not the Government, Should Regulate Big Tech

January 20, 2021
Next Post
Ghosts of the Past Tie Chile’s Hands when Confronting Terrorism

Ghosts of the Past Tie Chile's Hands when Confronting Terrorism

Subscribe free and never miss another breaking story

  • Venezuela
  • Mexico
  • Colombia
  • Chile
  • Brazil
  • Argentina
  • Podcast

© 2020 PanAm Post - Design & Develop by NEW DREAM GLOBAL CORP. - Privacy policy

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Regions
    • South America
    • North America
    • Central America
    • Caribbean
  • Politics
  • Economics
  • Opinion
  • Podcast
  • Authors
  • Contact

© 2020 PanAm Post - Design & Develop by NEW DREAM GLOBAL CORP. - Privacy policy

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. Privacy and Cookie Policy.