2012

The Society Mobile-La Havana hosted Chip Cooper’s photography exhibition Old Havana: Spirit of the Living City in the History Museum of Mobile. The exhibition aimed to show to faces of Cuba to create a form of people-to-people engagement.

2016

January

The Society hosted a delegation to Havana and Piñar del Rio where members attended lectures on various aspects of Cuban culture, such as music and journalism.

In the same trip, the delegates also met with city officials, engineers, woodworkers and craftspeople that utilize traditional methods to preserve the authenticity of the architecture and other city structures.

February

Faculty at the University of South Alabama welcome Mr. Fraga (middle)

The Society Mobile-La Havana hosted Mr. Miguel Fraga, First Secretary at the Cuban Embassy in Washington, D.C. to the University of South Alabama where he presented to students, faculty, staff and community members on Cuban-American relations.

To combat many misconceptions about modern-day Cuba, Mr. Fraga began by providing information about life in Cuba today. He emphasized Cuba’s role in international collaborations in medicine and disaster relief. He then mentioned President Obama’s and President Raúl Castro’s decision of December 2014 that officially restored diplomatic ties between the nations and later reopened the two embassies. Mr. Fraga expressed great hope for a normalized relationship between the two countries, including increased trade, travel and collaboration.

Mr. Fraga (left) has since become a frequent visitor to Alabama.

November

The Society in collaboration with three departments from the Univeristy of South Alabama hosted Christina Escobar, a Cuban news anchor, reporter and political commentator for a lecture in the fall. Her lecture, The Evolution of Journalism in Cuba’s Changing Environment, preceded the 2016 elections and greatly emphasized the changing climate of free speech.

2017

November

Despite the administration’s tighter restrictions on Cuba, the Society sponsored a delegation to Cuba once again, encouraging cultural depth and people-to-people interaction.

2018

Phi Sigma Iota inducted Mike Dow and Grey Reddit to recognize their contribution for promoting global engagement

July

Mobile Museum of Art features a celebratory photographic exhibition of the “common ground” found in the people, landscapes and cultures of Mobile and Havana. The two photographers, Chip Cooper and Cuban photographer Julio Larramendi, traveled together to find images and themes reflective of the commonalities in the two cities.

Mobile Museum of Art‘s gallery exhibition of *Common Ground*

The photographs were in display until September of 2018 and they traveled to Havana shortly after in honor of Havana’s 500th year anniversary.

2019

The Society sponsored filming for a documentary on Cuban baseball and its deep-rooted history in Spring Hill College.

May

The Society hosted Miguel Fraga to enjoy a Bay Bears baseball game and the first showing of the Cuban documentary on baseball and its roots in Mobile.