This work brings an anti-colonial reading to the production and maintenance of racial logic in Cuban schooling, through conversations with, and surveys of Cuban teachers, as well as through analysis of secondary and primary documents. The study undertaken seeks to contribute to the limited existent research on race relations in Cuba, with a research focus on the Cuban educational context. Teasing and staking out a middle ground between the blinding and often hollow pro-Cuba fanaticism and the deafening anti -Cuban rhetoric from the left and right respectively, this project seeks a more nuanced, complete and dialogical understanding of race and race relations in Cuba, with a specific focus on the educational context. With this in mind, the learning objectives of this study are to investigate the following: 1) What role does racism play in Cuba currently and historically? 2) What is the role of education in the life of race and racism on the island? 3) What new questions and insights emerge from the Cuban example that might be of use to integrated anti-racism, anti-colonialism and class-oriented scholarship and activism? On a more specific level, the guiding research objectives of the study are to investigate the following: 1) How do teachers support and/or challenge dominant ideas of race and racism, and to what degree to do they construct their own meanings on these topics? 2) How do teachers understand the relevance of race and racism for teaching and learning? 3) How and why do teachers address race and racism in the classroom? The data reveal a complex process of meaning making by teachers who are at once produced by and producers of dominant race discourse on the island. Teachers are the front line race workers of the racial project, doing much of the heavy lifting in the ongoing struggle against racism, but are at the same time custodians of an approach to race relations which has on the whole failed to eliminate racism. This work investigates and explicates this apparent contradiction inherent in teachers’ work and discourse on the island, revealing a flawed and complex form of Cuban anti-racism.

Essa tese ilumina as relações entre tradição, ensaio e história na obra de Alejo Carpentier, entre 1928 e 1980, com o intuito de compreender seu caminho para o antigo. O estudo recoloca a discussão sobre a proposta estética de escritores e movimentos de vanguarda europeus e latino-americanos. Minha principal consideração é de que a visão negativa de Carpentier acerca das vanguardas foi produto de uma estratégia de sagração de seu nome como intelectual e da separação de sua obra dos bens culturais da modernidade, como o rádio. Duas faces de uma mesma moeda colocou no esquecimento uma obra fundamentalmente vinculada à legitimidade moderna, especialmente por uma experiência do tempo vinculada ao presente e a constituição de uma rede intelectual latino-americana da qual Carpentier era partícipe. Por meio da análise de sua obra e do contexto europeu e latino-americano, este estudo realça que o conceito de formação é apropriado pelo autor para valorizar uma trajetória intelectual coesa que rejeitou os padrões de percepção e representação legados pelo surrealismo. Ao mesmo tempo, as múltiplas formas de leitura da tradição clássica inclusive utilizando os mitos de Sísifo e Adão valorizam o lugar autêntico de sua escrita, porém não deixam de ressaltar a presença da artificialidade do surrealismo. / The issue of this thesis is the relation amid tradition, political culture and history in the work of Alejo Carpentier (1928-1980) to understand his way to ancient. This proposal reassesses the dialogue between the aesthetic avant-garde European writers and Latin American manifestations. My main assertation is that Carpentiers negative appraisals by the avant-garde were the product of Rite of his name as intellectual and the distance of his work on the belongings of modernity, like a radio. Two faces on the same coin have been left behind a work linked to the modernity mainly connected to the present and the constitution of an intellectual latin-american web. By the annalisys of the work and the European and latin-american context, this work underlines that the concept of formation emphatizes an intellectual path that was opposed to the patterns of perception and representation legacy by the surrealism. Meanwhile, the different forms of lecture of classical tradition with the myths of Sisifo and Adam who praised the authentic writing on its own, although it maintains the artificiality of surrealism.

O presente trabalho visa explorar a forma do romance na periferia do capitalismo no século XX e XXI, tendo como paradigmas dois de seus mais destacados escritores, Alejo Carpentier e Mia Couto. Para tanto, analisa-se aqui as obras Los Pasos Perdidos (Carpentier) e O Outro Pé da Sereia (Couto) à luz da teoria do realismo de György Lukács. O que se deseja demonstrar é: visto que o romance é a epopéia do mundo burguês, autores como Carpentier se valeram do período de desenvolvimentismo industrial no continente latino-americano inserido no crescimento mundial do capitalismo pós-Segunda Guerra (1945-1975) para lançar o conflito entre a afirmação definitiva da modernidade e seu universo pré-moderno: a isto muitos deram o nome de realismo maravilhoso. Por sua vez, em Moçambique, o histórico colonial e a independência tardia na época da crise estrutural do capital (a partir de 1975) determinaram uma frágil afirmação dos padrões sociais burgueses. Tal condição tem conseqüências na produção romanesca de autores como Mia Couto. Entre elas: o maravilhoso aparece como princípio formal, elidindo tensões necessárias ao romance e restringindo assim o alcance de sua ficção. / The present work aims to explore the form of the novel in capitalisms periphery in the XX and XXI centuries, using as paradigms two of its most illustrious writers, Alejo Carpentier and Mia Couto. To do so, Los Pasos Perdidos (Carpentier) and O Outro Pé da Sereia (Couto) are studied from the perspective of György Lukácss realism theory. The intent is to demonstrate the following: since the novel is the bourgeois worlds epopee, authors such as Carpentier made use of the industrial development period in Latin America in the context of post-Second World War capitalisms growth in the world (1945-1975) to draw the conflict between modernitys definitive affirmation and its pre-modern universe: which many have named magical realism. In turn, in Mozambique, the colonial past and the late independence by the time of capitalisms structural crisis (starting in 1975) have defined a fragile affirmation of bourgeois social patterns. Such situation has consequences in the novel production of authors such as Mia Couto. Amongst which: the magical element appears as formal principle, suppressing necessary tensions to the novel, thus restricting its fictional reach.

Os Comités de Defensa de la Revolución (CDR) cumpriram um papel fundamental no processo de transição socialista iniciado em Cuba a partir de 1959. A Revolução, através deles, pode contar com o apoio das massas cubanas para enfrentar as muitas tarefas que se colocavam como desafios para a construção do socialismo no país. Construção que teria sido ainda mais difícil, não fossem os muitos cederistas em todo o país. Seu nascimento surge como resposta ao violento ataque contrarrevolucionário desencadeado com a ajuda do imperialismo estadunidense, mas rapidamente sofre uma profunda transformação. Os CDR, de forma bastante orgânica, passam a assumir as tarefas organizativas da vida cubana, fazendo com que a população atuasse em atividades que eram, até aquele momento, competência exclusiva do Estado. Com isso, os comités contribuem para a transformação do próprio caráter do Estado, tarefa essencial da transição socialista. O fato de que esta fosse uma sociedade de capitalismo dependente aumenta a dramaticidade da tarefa. Além disso, os CDR foram um importante canal para a participação política das massas cubanas, em um contexto em que as instituições políticas ainda não estavam suficientemente estabelecidas no país (período entre 1960 e 1975). Nesse sentido, agiram de forma dialética na contradição entre massas e vanguarda revolucionária, tensionando o processo em um sentido de maior democratização. / The Comités de Defensa de la Revolución (CDR) played a key role in the process of socialist transition initiated in Cuba in 1959. The Revolution, through them, can count on the support of the Cuban masses to face the many tasks that challenge for the construction of socialism in the country. Construction would have been even more difficult, if it were not for the many cederistas across the country. His birth comes as a response to the violent counterrevolutionary attack unleashed with the aid of US imperialism, but quickly undergoes a profound transformation. The CDR, in a very organic way, began to assume the organizational tasks of Cuban life, making the population work in activities that until then were the exclusive competence of the State itself. With this, the comités contribute to the transformation of the character of the State, an essential task of the socialist transition. The fact that it was a society of dependent capitalism increases the drama of the task. In addition, the CDR were an important channel for the political participation of the Cuban masses, in a context where political institutions were not sufficiently established in the country yet (between 1960 and 1975). In this sense, they acted dialectically in the contradiction between the masses and the revolutionary vanguard, stressing the process in a sense of greater democratization.

This thesis (i) presents a critical analysis of the political allegory and dramatic elements employed by Antón Arrufat in Los siete contra Tebas in order to comment upon the conflict in Cuban society during and immediately after the Cuban revolution; and (ii) further analyzes that conflict using an anthropological approach in order to establish partial reintegration as an additional final phase in the rites of passage journey.

Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) disproportionally affects ethnic minorities in the United States. The development of T2D involves complex interaction between environmental factors and genetic predisposition. The genetic associations of six single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in TCF7L2 gene with the risk of T2D were evaluated in three high risk minority populations: Cuban Americans, Haitian Americans, and African Americans. For Cuban Americans, four SNPs (rs7901695, rs4506565, rs7903146 and rs11225537) were significantly associated with the risk of T2D after multivariable adjustment (p=0.018, p=0.016, p=0.014, and p=0.0008, respectively). Among controls, risk allele carriers of SNPs rs7901695, rs4506565 and rs7903146 had significantly higher fasting glucose level, compared to non-risk allele carriers. Additionally, a significant interaction between dietary fiber intake and SNP rs7903146 for the risk of T2D (p= 0.044) was found in Cuban Americans. Similarly, for SNP rs7901695, significant interaction was also found for fiber intake (p=0.014) as well as glycemic load (p=0.040). Subgroup analysis revealed that significant associations were only found within higher intake groups of dietary factors for both SNPs. For Haitian Americans, SNPs rs11196205 (p=0.059) and rs7895340 (p=0.069) showed marginal significance for the risk of T2D. After stratification by gender, SNPs with marginal significance from the gender-combined analysis became statistically significant with the same trend for the risk of T2D when analysis were done in males: rs11196205 (p=0.034) and rs7895340 (p=0.024). For African Americans, SNP rs7903146 (p=0.065) showed a marginal significance with the risk of T2D in gender-combined analysis and a statistical significance (p=0.013) in males. Two additional SNPs rs7901695 and rs4506565 were found to be significantly associated with the risk of T2D in males. Risk allele carriers of these two SNPs had significantly higher mean level of the fasting glucose level, compared to non-risk allele carriers in controls. T2D related quantitative trait analysis also demonstrated that in controls, compared to non-minor allele carriers of SNP rs12255372, minor allele carriers had significantly higher means of BMI, diastolic blood pressure, numbers of components of Metabolic Syndrome, significantly lower mean values of HDL-cholesterol and adiponectin. Taken together, our studies demonstrated ethno-specific genetic associations between TCF7L2 gene and the risk of T2D and related phenotypes.

Abstract During the fourteen years between 1898 and 1912, the influences imparted upon the School System of Cuba were substantial. In the period immediately following the conflict with Spain, known in the U.S. as the Spanish American War, a concerted effort was underway to annex the island of Cuba. This study was undertaken to discover what courses were introduced into the K-12 curricula following the U.S. intervention, who introduced those changes, and what, if any influence those changes brought to the culture of the island. This investigation and analysis was necessary to reinvigorate the discussion regarding the history of the Cuban education system in view of the attempted cultural change brought about by the U.S. intervention. While many actions were underway by various factions both within the U.S. government and without to ensure that the annexation would be successful, one concerted effort was undertaken through the reconstruction of Cuba's schools. Changes that were made include: coursework, textbooks, structure of schools, selection process for teachers and professors at the University of Havana, holiday schedule, and the school-day and school-year. While the language of instruction remained Spanish, the method of delivery and training of Cuban school teachers was adapted through an extended summer Normal School program in association with Harvard University and a fulltime program at the New Paltz Normal School in New York. From the results collected regarding the coursework, individuals involved, and the changes imparted upon the culture of Cuba, it appears that a concerted effort was underway to impose a U.S.-styled school system on Cuba with the intended result of annexation of the island of Cuba by acclamation of the Cuban people.

My purpose in writing this dissertation is to re-evaluate the works of three influential Spanish-Caribbean authors who seem to be remembered more as exceptional historical characters rather than for their literature itself. Although often considered to be important contributors to the Spanish-Caribbean literary canon, these writers have also suffered a measure of marginalization as scholars have relegated them to the status of discursive subjects rather than evaluate them as authorial agents. As a consequence, the majority of their works have not been fully recognized as important factors in nineteenth, twentieth, and twenty first century literary production. I show how in their writings – many of which have been misunderstood, under-evaluated, and/or forgotten altogether – these writers narrated their own precarious situations and lifted their voice in protest against slavery, racism and economic oppression at a time when the dominant discourses and heavy-handed controls of the Spanish colonial government strictly forbid them to do so. These authors are Juan Francisco Manzano, Gabriel de la Concepción Valdés (Plácido) and Eleuterio Derkes. Because these authors lived in Cuba (Manzano and Plácido) and Puerto Rico (Derkes) as colonial subjects underneath the oppressive structures of their respective plantation and hacienda economies based on sugar production and slave labor, they experienced difficult colonial conditions and as such are able to narrate this life through a unique perspective that other writers associated with the dominant discourses of the time could not. While these brands of hegemony were indeed forced upon them as writers and artists, it did not stop them from narrating and communicating their unique Spanish Caribbean perspective. I show how these authors, as marginalized figures of nineteenth century plantation society, engineered their own discourses around these hegemonic institutions – writing between the lines of hegemony and concurrent with it at the same time – in order to create an alternative image of nineteenth century Spanish Caribbean society that requires further critical consideration and perspective. / text

Despite being the global leader in the “war on terror,” the United States has been accused of sponsoring terrorism against Cuba. The following study assesses these charges. After establishing a definition of terrorism, it examines U.S.-Cuban relations from 1808 to 1958, arguing that the United States has historically employed violence in its efforts to control Cuba. U.S. leaders maintained this approach even after the Cuban Revolution: months after Fidel Castro’s guerrilla army took power, Washington began organizing Cuban exiles to carry out terrorist attacks against the island, and continued to support and tolerate such activities until the 1970s, culminating in what was the hemisphere’s most lethal act of airline terrorism before 9/11. Since then, the United States has maintained contact with well-known anti-Castro terrorists, in many cases employing and harbouring them, despite its claims to be fighting an international campaign against terrorism.

This work brings an anti-colonial reading to the production and maintenance of racial logic in Cuban schooling, through conversations with, and surveys of Cuban teachers, as well as through analysis of secondary and primary documents. The study undertaken seeks to contribute to the limited existent research on race relations in Cuba, with a research focus on the Cuban educational context. Teasing and staking out a middle ground between the blinding and often hollow pro-Cuba fanaticism and the deafening anti -Cuban rhetoric from the left and right respectively, this project seeks a more nuanced, complete and dialogical understanding of race and race relations in Cuba, with a specific focus on the educational context. With this in mind, the learning objectives of this study are to investigate the following: 1) What role does racism play in Cuba currently and historically? 2) What is the role of education in the life of race and racism on the island? 3) What new questions and insights emerge from the Cuban example that might be of use to integrated anti-racism, anti-colonialism and class-oriented scholarship and activism? On a more specific level, the guiding research objectives of the study are to investigate the following: 1) How do teachers support and/or challenge dominant ideas of race and racism, and to what degree to do they construct their own meanings on these topics? 2) How do teachers understand the relevance of race and racism for teaching and learning? 3) How and why do teachers address race and racism in the classroom? The data reveal a complex process of meaning making by teachers who are at once produced by and producers of dominant race discourse on the island. Teachers are the front line race workers of the racial project, doing much of the heavy lifting in the ongoing struggle against racism, but are at the same time custodians of an approach to race relations which has on the whole failed to eliminate racism. This work investigates and explicates this apparent contradiction inherent in teachers’ work and discourse on the island, revealing a flawed and complex form of Cuban anti-racism.