From our Bureau of Academic Skulduggery with some assistance from our Bureau of Classy Final Acts
Back in 2017 Juilio Frenk, the incoming president of the University of Miami, sought to make that institution’s Center for Cuban and Cuban American Studies more Castro-friendly. Up until then, the ICCAS had served as the premier anti-Castro think tank in the U.S. Predictably, Frenk’s plan caused the director and founder of the Center — Jaime Suchlicki– to resign in protest.
Undeterred by Frenk’s skulduggery, Suchlicki established a rival think tank, The Cuban Studies Institute. Now, due to health reasons, Suchlicki has announced the closing of this think tank, which never ceased the work Suchlicki had begun at the University of Miami, albeit with fewer resources..
And what about the ICCAS at the University of Miami? It never recovered after Frenk’s hostile takeover. It’s still there, but it is a shadow of its former self, despite the richness of its archives. Suchlicki’s new center is selling all of its belongings at a public auction today, and this includes its library.
Abridged and loosely translated from ADN Cuba
“With deep sorrow, I announce the closure of the Cuban Studies Institute as of December 1, 2024,” Jaime Suchlicki, the current director of the think tank, stated this week in an email addressed to collaborators, friends, and clients, which ADN Cuba accessed.
In the message, the Cuban-American researcher added that he would be unable to continue “due to Parkinson’s and diabetes,” and he expressed gratitude for the support given to the institution during its years of operation.
In a second email, also accessed by our outlet, the institute announced the definitive closure of its offices on November 28, 2024, and invited people to a closing sale of books in English and Spanish, paintings, and furniture.
The sale will take place on Saturday, November 23, 2024, between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., at the Bank of America Building at 1500 South Dixie Highway, Suite 200, on the corner of US1 and Madruga Avenue, in Coral Gables.
Suchlicki was born in Havana in 1939 and emigrated to the United States in 1960 when he was just over 20 years old. Seven years later, he began his career as a History professor at the University of Miami. Between 1989 and 1992, he served as the founding executive director of the North-South Center and was also the editor of the Journal of Interamerican Studies from 1982 to 1996.
Among Suchlicki’s most significant contributions to the social sciences was founding and directing the Cuban Research Institute at the University of Miami, which he led from 1978 to 1992, and later the Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies (ICCAS) from May 1999 to 2017.
Historian Marcos Antonio Ramos lamented the institute’s closure, telling ADN Cuba that he fondly remembered being “a member of the institute until its closure, even from its early days when it was part of the University of Miami.”
“Jaime Suchlicki has been a giant in these fields and will be missed. We will always stand by him as old friends and colleagues. Now it is up to a new generation to find ways to continue his work and that of the Institute. His legacy will be recognized,” said Ramos.
In 2017, Suchlicki’s departure from ICCAS was controversial. In a statement released that summer, the University of Miami announced his removal as the center’s director.
After half a century at the university, Suchlicki stated that it was not a retirement but a “resignation” due to differences with then-president Julio Frenk over the future of Cuban studies at the institution.
At the time, El Nuevo Herald reported that several ICCAS members believed Suchlicki’s departure was linked, among other reasons, to alleged plans to consolidate multiple centers into a single Department of Latin American Studies and to strengthen institutional ties with Cuban universities. These plans included programs similar to those implemented by other U.S. universities, prompted by the thaw in U.S.-Cuba relations under then-President Barack Obama.
The independent think tank Cuban Studies Institute, founded by Suchlicki after his departure from ICCAS, represented a continuation of the project he had started in the 1970s. Through this institution, Suchlicki established himself as a highly respected consultant on Cuban issues for both the public and private sectors.For Daniel I. Pedreira, a political science professor at Florida International University, the Cuban Studies Institute will leave a significant void in the study of Cuban affairs.
“Since 2017, it always struggled to secure funding to stay afloat. It gained some respect among academics, diplomats, and others interested in Cuban current events due to the credibility brought by its director, Professor Jaime Suchlicki. Even more striking is the news of the retirement of the respected historian, who always maintained a firm stance on Cuba’s freedom. This steadfast position and his efforts to create spaces for analyzing the Cuban situation earned him academic and political adversaries,” Pedreira stated for this report.
The Cuban Studies Institute featured contributions from figures such as Álvaro Alba, Ambassador Otto Reich, Pedro Roig, and Sherri L. Porcelain in articles and essays on topics like the Castro-era educational system, evangelical groups during the 2018–2022 uprisings, and relations between Havana and Washington, among others.
For political analyst and director of the Center for a Free Cuba, John Suárez, the Cuban exile community will feel the absence of the Cuban Studies Institute.
“However, we must be grateful for the 57 years Professor Suchlicki shared his knowledge of history with us and for the 25 years he created a space for the Cuban exile community to engage in serious thought, high-caliber conversation, and debate,” he told ADN Cuba.
Frenk was a problem from the beginning of his tenure, as he was bound to be. Basically, even in Miami, academia is dominated and largely composed by leftists, who have always been averse to Cuba’s welfare.
Wasn’t Frenk that Mexican administrator that they brought in to head the university? The shocking thing is that Cubans are so useless. Look how Jews were able to remove the presidents of Columbia, Harvard, Penn State, etc… and we can’t even exert a little bit of pressure on Frenk. No wonder we’re referred to as chihuahuas.
Frenk has moved on and there’s a new president now, but yes, he was that Mexican administrator they brought in, and yes, the Cuban movers and shakers in Miami have been less than impressive.
“Frenk has moved on and there’s a new president now, but yes, he was that Mexican administrator they brought in, and yes, the Cuban movers and shakers in Miami have been less than impressive.”
Cubans movers and shakers are more interested in their own personal edification and in doing business deals with the regime if they think that they can make more money, Argentine-born Cuban, Jorge Perez is a classic example.
Look at the Ana de Armas case. The rank-and-file Cubans have criticized her, but where are the Cuban entertainers?
Have the Estefans said anything? How about Eva Mendes or Andy Garcia? Pitbull is a POS, so we can’t expect anything from him. But the point is that Cubans do nothing. Look how Jewish entertainers got together and put a Jewish filmmaker who made a speech criticizing Israel during the last Oscar Ceremony in his place. They all signed a letter criticizing him.
For practical purposes, the Perez guy you mention is bound to be much more “Latin” than Cuban. He’s not just a Democrat but an active contributor to Dem politics, so absolutely not one of “those people.” As for the entertainment biz people, I’m pretty fed up with that whole crowd in general.