Colonial Legacies: Cuba and Latin America Allen Wells, the Roger
Howell, Jr. Professor of History at Bowdoin College, scholarship
has focused on modern Mexican history, especially Yucatán. His
most recent book is Tropical Zion: General Trujillo, FDR and the
Jews of Sosúa. Professor Wells is the first in our series of
podcasts from our December, 2009 event: Cuban Exceptionalism:
Reflections on Latin American History. This one day event
examined the colonial history of Cuba, the Revolution and the
post-revolution era of the region. Professor Wells’ opening
lecture entitled Colonial Legacies: Cuba and Latin America, set
the scene of Cuba’s history of colonialism and how baseball
played a role in politics. Professor Wells’ lecture was part of
the Cuban Exceptionalism symposium which took place on December
4, 2009 in the Albert Brenner Glickman Library at the University
of Southern Maine.