Join us for the first event in a new innovative series>> that will look behind the headlines and amplify the sound bites. As a news story heats up, we'll alert you of the topic by Jan. 12, and then welcome you to an informal, lively program that allows you to dig deeper into the issues—and to ask plenty of questions of the pros.
Featured Topic: Cuba
Featured Speaker: William LeoGrande
President Obama’s recent decision to move toward full diplomatic relations with Cuba has been both hailed as a long-overdue end to a Cold War-era policy and criticized by others for its support of Communist regime that limits freedom for its citizens. What might this change of course mean in terms of real policy—and for Americans for whom Cuba may open more widely as a focus of travel and trade? Here’s your chance to ask an expert on U.S.-Cuban relations.
LeoGrande is the co-author of Back Channel to Cuba: The Hidden History of Negotiations between Washington and Havana (The University of North Carolina Press) and is a professor at the American University School of Public Affairs.
Other Connections
Learn more about William LeoGrande.
Learn more about LeoGrande's book.
Read various articles by LeoGrande on U.S.-Cuban relations on ForeignPolicy.com and LATimes.com.
Smithsonian NewsFlash is here to dig further into the facts and bring in experts to give their own accounts of current events in order to provide context for breaking news. The expressed views and opinions of the experts do not necessarily reflect the official positions or opinions of the Smithsonian Associates or the Smithsonian Institution.
