By Elaine De Valle. edevalle@herald.com. October 11, 2001.
The Miami Herald
On the 133rd anniversary of Cuba's declaration of independence from Spain,
the struggle to preserve the history and culture of the island nation won a big
victory Wednesday about 150 miles to the north.
U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Mel Martinez and former U.S.
Sen. Connie Mack joined with University of Miami President Donna E. Shalala and
nearly 200 others to unveil plans for a bigger and better Institute for Cuban
and Cuban-American Studies and Casa Bacardi at the University of Miami in Coral
Gables.
Funded by a $1 million grant from the Bacardi Family Foundation, Casa
Bacardi will house a 3,000-square-foot exhibition hall for art and other
displays, a small cinema for regular screenings of Cuban films and
documentaries, a conference center and two pavilions. Construction, which
involves expansion and remodeling of the institute's existing building at 1531
Brescia Ave., is expected to be finished by May 2002.
Martinez, who left Cuba in the Pedro Pan exodus, said he was glad the
institute exists.
"It's so important for our young people to understand where they come
from and what they're made of,'' he said, calling it "a rallying point and
place where the reconstruction of Cuba can begin.''
Much of the credit was heaped on institute director and UM Professor Jaime
Suchlicki, whose vision made the institute a reality, said Andy Gomez, dean of
the UM School of International Studies.
Beaming like a proud papa, Suchlicki said, "This is a dream that has
come true today.''
The state-of-the-art Casa Bacardi will also have listening stations where
students and visitors can listen to a century of Cuban music -- from Ernesto
Lecuona to Celia Cruz -- and computer terminals with access to the institute's
Cuba database, a comprehensive archive of Cuban history and information
available online at http://cuba.sis.miami.edu
Shalala called Casa Bacardi a "permanent symbol'' of UM's commitment to
Cuban and Cuban-American studies.
"Our unique geographic location affords us the opportunity to tap into
the reservoir of history, culture and ideas in the Cuban diaspora,'' she said,
adding that she recently learned that when her family fled Lebanon to these
parts of the world, Cuba was one destination.
"It seems I, too, have Cuban blood and now Cuban coffee and Bacardi rum
running through my veins,'' she told an appreciative crowd.
For more information on Casa Bacardi or the Institute for Cuban and Cuban
American Studies call 305-284-2822 or visit www.miami.edu/ICCAS | 
