Cuba

The Making of the Freshest Cigars in Cuba

By Erin Barton
October 7, 2016

The small Cuban city of Viñales is a colorful town situated at the foot of the Cordillera de Guaniguanico, a sharply pitched, palm-and-vine-draped mountain range with awe-inspiring internal caves and strikingly stark facades. The rolling fields that surround Viñales are saturated with color: the rich red-brown soil is almost as vivid as the bright green tobacco leaves growing out of it. The tobacco fincas, or plantations, extend around Viñales and into the mountains where coffee is grown as well.

Academic Exchange Between Cuba and East Germany Since 1960s – A Transnational Elite?

By Menja Holtz
October 5, 2016

The partnership between revolutionary Cuba and the German Democratic Republic (GDR) offered a route for migration that had not been possible before. While acade­mic exchange was aimed to construct a socialist society in Cuba and serving the eco­nomic and political interests of both states, the creation of a transnational academic elite and of intel­lectual collectives across borders occurred as a by-product of the exchange.

A 54 Year Old Vestige of the Cold War Finally Thaws

By Sophia Winston
October 5, 2016

On August 15, 2015, Secretary of State John Kerry, was the first US secretary of state to visit Cuba in 70 years. His visit marks the historic end of sour relations between the US and Cuba and the re-opening of the US embassy in Havana. As he addressed the crowd, in both English and Spanish, he talked about the possibility of lifting the 54-year-old trade embargo, as well as the restoration of a true democratic system on the island.

Property Rights in Cuba, A Lurking Legal Nightmare

By Susan Wiedel
October 5, 2016

The year is 1959. Imagine you are an American tourist. During your stay, you withdraw money from an American-owned bank, use American-owned electricity, smoke American-grown tobacco, use American-owned phone lines, buy beachwear at an American-owned store, and sleep at an American-owned hotel. Where would you guess you are vacationing?

If your guess is somewhere in the United States––Florida, perhaps––you’re within 200 miles of being correct.

Raúl Castro’s resolute address to the U.N.

By Erin Barton
October 4, 2016

Monday, September 21, 2015, marked the one year anniversary of the death of Paola Acosta, a woman who suffered her fate at the hands of her ex-partner1, Gonzalo Lizarralde. She was raped, killed and dumped in a sewer together with her one-year-old daughter, Martina, who she had in common with her attacker. Remarkably, Martina survived. Wednesday, September 23, Gonzalo Lizarralde, marked the first day of the prosecution for the murder of Paola2.

“I love that, that is my story:” An Evening with Richard Blanco

By Emma Freedman
October 4, 2016

On October 2, 2015 Carlow University and the city of Pittsburgh were given the pleasure of hosting Richard Blanco, the inaugural poet for Barack Obama’s 2012 inauguration, the poet chosen for the ceremonial reopening of the United States Embassy in Cuba, and an author of various works. Of Blanco’s works many are published by The University of Pittsburgh Press. Blanco started off the evening, which was his first time in Pittsburgh, saying he felt that he had come home.

Pope Francis: Unofficial Diplomat between the United States and Latin America

By Hilary Heath
October 4, 2016

Since becoming Pope, Pope Francis has been celebrated around the world as not only a religious figure, but also an unofficial diplomat. Pope Francis has traveled around the world and given a number of addresses during his time as Pope thus far. Yet, though a religious leader, the Pope’s addresses are never simply religious. Instead, his message has weighed in on a number of political topics, including immigration and US-Cuba relations during his most recent visit to both countries.

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