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Cuba After the July 11 Protests Image

Alexandre Meneghini听| Reuters

Fifteen months before the island-wide protests that rocked Cuba on July 11, 2021, Rowman and Littlefield published Cuba at the Crossroads, which we edited. The book explored several challenges the country was facing鈥攖hough at the time of writing COVID-19 was not among them鈥攁nd anticipated that change would be inevitable. Contrary to a common narrative that Cuba is mired in the twentieth century unable to adapt to new circumstances, Cuba at the Crossroads highlighted changes that had occurred in the six years since we had edited A Contemporary Cuba Reader: The Revolution under Ra煤l Castro. But most observers did not appreciate how angry many Cubans have become over the slow pace of change and the government鈥檚 seeming lack of understanding of the suffering Cubans were experiencing. The unprecedented outpouring of protests on July 11 surprised analysts and even the protest organizers themselves.听

The July 11th demonstrations elicited a variety of analyses and commentaries that have attempted to explain the significance of events that day. Were these protests a sign that the revolutionary government was widely unpopular with the Cuban masses? Was this the harbinger of a Cuban version of the Arab Spring? Were we witnessing profound social change, or temporary frustration in the face of an ongoing pandemic and food shortages? Or was this merely the result of U.S. manipulation of social media?

As long-time observers of Cuban politics and history, we were immediately aware of the significance of events that day. July 11 was more than just a single day of protests, but instead signaled major challenges for the Cuban revolutionary process. As a result, we invited some of the foremost Cuba specialists from various countries to offer their interpretations of the meaning of 鈥11-J,鈥 as it is widely known. Our objective is to provide an empirically and analytically grounded account of these unprecedented protests.

This virtual Symposium presents a series of essays examining key aspects of the events that day, reviewing the various background conditions, and contributing factors that led to the protests. Together they help to complete the picture of what occurred that day, why it happened, and what it may portend for the future.

The Symposium consists of several components, beginning with the original invited contributions. The Additional Analysis section includes links to some of the most insightful reflections on 11-J published elsewhere, many of them by Cubans on the island, representing a range of viewpoints. This is followed by the Further Readings section which provides links to a wide variety of statements and analyses on 11-J, including statements from the U.S. and Cuban governments, third countries and international organizations, as well as analyses by independent commentators.

Finally, we would like to express our appreciation to our contributors who crafted in-depth analyses in record time, and to 国产小呦女鈥檚 Center for Latin American and Latino Studies for hosting this symposium.

William M. LeoGrande, John M. Kirk and Philip Brenner

Additional Analyses

Domingo Amuchastegui
Cambiamos o nos hundimos, La Joven Cuba, July 26, 2021.

Jes煤s Arboleya
A Political X-Ray for Possible Dialogue in Cuba
Progreso Weekly, August 4, 2021. Spanish version

Lorena Cant贸
Padura: Cuba鈥檚 problems must be resolved among Cubans
OnCuba News, August 4, 2021. Spanish version听听

Edilberto Carmona Tamayo and Ana 脕lvarez Guerrero
Debate en torno a los hechos del 11 de julio: Desaf铆os sociales y pol铆ticos
Cubadebate, August 12, 2021.听

Julio Antonio Fern谩ndez Estrada
Hemos perdido el sue帽o
El Toque, July 18, 2021.

Ren茅 Gonz谩lez Sehwerert
Carta a un primo o las siete plagas de Cuba
Cubadebate, July 31, 2021.

Julio C茅sar Guanche
Cuba Today: Homeland, People, and Sovereignty
NACLA Report on the Americas, July 16, 2021. Spanish version

Rafael 贬别谤苍谩苍诲别锄

OnCuba News, July 21, 2021.听

La Tizza
O Guisa o Praga
La Tizza Editorial, October 1, 2021.

Arturo L贸pez-Levy
Protestas en Cuba, causas y consecuencias para un debate desde Am茅rica Latina
The Clinic, July 21, 2021.

Emilio Santiago Mui帽o
El estallido social cubano: Motivaciones inmediatas (I)
El estallido social cubano: Motivaciones de fondo (II)
CTXT, No. 274, July 2021.

Leonardo Padura
Cuba: Un alarido
NODAL, July 17, 2021. English version 听

Andr茅s Pertierra
The Meaning of the Protests in Cuba
Dissent Magazine, August 13, 2021.听

Margaret Randall
Cuba鈥檚 Crisis, Our Response
NACLA Report on the Americas, August 11, 2021.听

Silvio Rodr铆guez Dom铆nguez
Preguntas y respuestas del 30 de julio de 2021
Segunda Cita, July 31, 2021.

Denis Rogatyuk
Ren茅 Gonz谩lez of the Cuban Five on Cuba鈥檚 Challenge and Washington鈥檚 Hypocrisy
Jacobin, August 6, 2021.

Laura Seguera Lio and Armando Franco Sen茅n
Desaf铆os del Consenso: Pol铆tica
Alma Mater, August 25, 2021.

Ailynn Torres Santana and Julio C茅sar Guanche
Adaptable Cuba?
New Left Review, September 10, 2021. Spanish version