Synopses & Reviews
Guantand#225;namo has become a symbol of what has gone wrong in the War on Terror. Yet Guantand#225;namo is more than a U.S. naval base and prison in Cuba, it is a town, and our military occupation there has required more than soldiers and sailorsand#151;it has required workers. This revealing history of the women and men who worked on the U.S. naval base in Guantand#225;namo Bay tells the story of U.S.-Cuban relations from a new perspective, and at the same time, shows how neocolonialism, empire, and revolution transformed the lives of everyday people. Drawing from rich oral histories and little-explored Cuban archives, Jana K. Lipman analyzes how the Cold War and the Cuban revolution made the naval base a place devoid of law and accountability. The result is a narrative filled with danger, intrigue, and exploitation throughout the twentieth century. Opening a new window onto the history of U.S. imperialism in the Caribbean and labor history in the region, her book tells how events in Guantand#225;namo and the base created an ominous precedent likely to inform the functioning of U.S. military bases around the world.
Review
and#8220;Lipman offers a new and compelling angle on the crisis.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;Lipmanand#8217;s account is impressive, original, and well researched. . . . Should interest foreign relations scholars, Latin America area specialists, and labor historians.and#8221;
Review
“Splendid. . . . Lipman shows successfully that Cuban workers mattered.” International History Review
Review
“Lipman has produced a grounded, powerful critique of United States policy.” Estudios Interdisciplinarios De America Latina Y El Caribe (Eial)
Review
and#8220;Splendid. . . . Lipman shows successfully that Cuban workers mattered.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;Lipman has produced a grounded, powerful critique of United States policy.and#8221;
Synopsis
"Engaging and eye-opening to anyone interested in Guantand#225;namo's current role, American imperialism, Caribbean history, working-class politics, or gender in international affairs."and#151;Cynthia Enloe, author of
Globalization and Militarism "A compelling example of why good diplomatic history needs to also be social history (and vice versa)."and#151;Greg Grandin, author of Empire's Workshop
About the Author
Jana K. Lipman is Assistant Professor of History at Tulane University.
Table of Contents
List of Illustrations
Introduction: Between Guantand#225;namo and GTMO
Prologue: Regional Politics, 1898, and the Platt Amendment
1. The Case of Kid Chicle:
Military Expansion and Labor Competition, 1939-1945
2. and#147;We Are Real Democratsand#8221;:
Legal Debates and Cold War Unionism before Castro, 1940-1954
3. Good Neighbors, Good Revolutionaries, 1940-1958
4. A and#147;Ticklishand#8221; Position: Revolution, Loyalty, and Crisis, 1959-1964
5. Contract Workers, Exiles, and Commuters:
Neocolonial and Postmodern Labor Arrangements
Epilogue: Post 9/11: Empire and Labor Redux
Appendix: Guantand#225;namo Civil Registry, 1921-1958
Notes
Selected Bibliography
Acknowledgments
Index