It's like a Fellini Film: Dissent In & Exodus Out Of Cuba.
Frederico Fellini films are a mix of "memory, dreams, fantasy and desire" that create idiosyncratic interpretations of society. If you're have any ties to, or interests in, Cuba, it might feel like you're in a Fellini script. Cuba entered the pandemic on the front foot. Sending its own health care workers around the world to assist with COVID-19 care, and then exporting its domestically engineered vaccines abroad, it seemed like Cuba was THE GLOBAL HEALTH POWER. Now at the beginning of 2023, roughly 300,000 people have left the island (many between the ages of 26 - 42). The domestic supply chain is in chaos, with everything from foods to medicines in short supply. And COVID-19 made its way into the island claiming thousands of lives, while the country continues to wrestle with the challenges of one of the longest embargoes in history. Protests have been common in Cuba during the pandemic, and more recently Cuba has reaffirmed its loyalty to Vladimir Putin. What in the world is going on in Cuba? Helping us look into the cloudy crystal ball is Joseph Scarpaci, a seasoned scholar and analyst of Cuban politics, culture and society. In this season premiere episode, we take a deep dive into Cuba's current turmoil. Dr. Joseph L. Scarpaci, Executive Director, Center for the Study of Cuban Culture and Economy, has been involved with cultural and educational travel to Cuba since 1991. Since then, he introduced more than 500 students, faculty, alumni, and interested travelers to the island. He aims to show travelers the many nuances of Cuban culture and economy. He is the author of three books and dozens of articles about Cuba. These include Cuban Landscapes: Heritage, Memory and Place (with Cuban geographer Dr. Armando Portela, New York: Guilford, 2009); Plazas & Barrios: Heritage Tourism and Globalization in the Latin American Centro Histórico(University of Arizona Press, 2005) Follow Dr. Bob on Twitter: @ProfessorHuish