Voices of a Changing Cuba
October 7 @ 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm
The University of Miami’s Cuban Heritage Collection will bring together Cuban performance artist and activist Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara and academic and activist Anamely Ramos for a Spanish-language conversation moderated by journalist Jorge Ramos. The panel will examine artistic freedom, political dissent, exile and freedom of expression in Cuba, drawing on the participants’ experiences in the country’s independent artistic and civic movements.
Otero Alcántara is a co-founder of Movimiento San Isidro, an independent artistic movement established in opposition to Cuba’s Decree 349, a 2018 measure restricting artistic activity. His work includes public performances challenging government restrictions on artistic expression, including Drapeau, in which he wore the Cuban flag in protest of flag legislation.
Ramos, a former professor at Havana’s Instituto Superior de Arte, where she taught Cuban and African art for 12 years, was dismissed following her public opposition to government censorship. She holds degrees in Art History and Cuban Cultural Processes.
The discussion will be moderated by Jorge Ramos, the former Univision News anchor, author and Emmy Award-winning journalist whose career spans nearly four decades. Ramos currently hosts the podcasts “The Moment” with his daughter Paola and “Así Veo Las Cosas.”
Sponsored by the Amigos of the Cuban Heritage Collection, the program will explore the intersection of art, activism and freedom of expression in Cuba.