Cuba: History and Revolution

Cuba was one of the first New World colonies of Europe yet among the last to sever the colonial bond. The island was among the last places in the hemisphere to abolish slavery, yet home to the first black political party in the Americas. After the revolution of 1959, among the most radical of the modern world, it became an important international symbol of third world socialism and anti-imperialism, and an unexpected focus of global Cold War struggles. This course serves as an introduction to that fascinating history and to the major themes that have shaped it: race and slavery; nationalism and empire; revolution and socialism.