A Conference call.
An International Conference on Martí, Juárez, and Lincoln in the Soul of Our America call for papers and announce that the Conference should be hold next May 17-19, 2009, in Monterrey, Mexico, at the location: José Martí Institute of Higher Education, Matamoros No. 453 Pte., Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico
CONFERENCE CALL
A broad delegation of the José Martí Cultural Society, meeting in Monterrey, Mexico, with representatives of institutions dedicated to José Martí in Cuba, has decided to hold a conference in that city with delegates from social organizations and cultural institutions throughout Our America. We can do so as a dialogue between generations or a dialogue between two centuries; that is, those of us who have lived intensely during the last century and those who will live well into the present one. The conference will have the following objectives:
To prepare a message to the peoples of Our America and of the United States and Canada in order to foster vital ties between the homelands of José Martí, Benito Juárez, and the forebearers and thinkers of Latin America and the Caribbean, on the one hand, and those of the homeland of Lincoln on the other. This is a pressing need in face of the crisis of European North American civilization, which could lead to a catastrophe of incalculable proportions for the world as a result of the irresponsible actions of the old oligarchies. The human family is at mortal risk. Fidel Castro has expressed it in a dramatic way:
Either the course of events will change, or our species will not survive.[1]
He has also stated the following, with infinite faith in human beings and the role of education:
Looking toward the future, the great wealth of the human mind lies in the enormous potential of genetically transmitted intelligence that we are incapable of using. That is what we possess, that is where the future lies.[2]
Other world leaders and prominent figures, as well as the United Nations, have warned of this same danger that confronts the human species and life on earth in general.
The solution lies in achieving a general comprehensive culture and education, the most important category of which is justice, to guide us toward the necessary coordination of university and educational movements in general with social movements now developing. Each one by itself can make great efforts, but together they can achieve the definitive victory of the human species over the injustice and arbitrariness that threaten the existence of our species.
In face of the bankruptcy of all systems of ideas of human civilization, we must turn to analyzing the ideas of all the founding leaders and thinkers who have made important contributions to the history of humanity. Such an analysis must be done free from any ideological or political criteria, and without prejudice of any kind, selecting the best ideas applicable to our era. Toward this aim, we Cubans are inspired by the elective method of our country?s philosophical tradition, summarized in the words of José de la Luz y Caballero, founder of the Cuban school: ?All schools of thought and no one school: that is education.?
To reach these goals, we propose promoting the ideas and generous actions of all great currents of humanity, beginning with the culture represented by José Martí, Benito Juárez, Abraham Lincoln, and the founding leaders and thinkers of the Americas. It is only through integration and educational and cultural efforts, with a social content, that we can achieve that. How can this great goal be realized?
The ideas of the Enlightenment gave us the theory of the three powers: executive, legislative, and judicial. It was precisely Montesquieu, in his masterpiece The Spirit of the Laws (1748), who postulated that it was necessary to ensure separation and balance between the different powers to guarantee individual rights and liberties.
Historical practice added a ?fourth power,? that of the press, which we now call the mass media. This so-called fourth power has become today a key element in the intense struggle for control of consciousness and ideas. Technological advances in this area have accentuated the power of the transnational media corporations on a world scale, but at the same time they have has created openings through which we can and must make our message known.
For these purposes we would suggest the following selection of Martí?s ideas:
In the heart of America are the Antilles, which, if enslaved, would be a mere pontoon of an imperial republic against a jealous and superior world that is preparing to deny it power, a mere bunker of American Rome; and if free?and worthy of being so from the standpoint of even-handed and hard-working liberty?they would guarantee equilibrium on the continent, independence for Spanish America that is still threatened, and honor for the great republic of the North, which by developing its territory ? unhappily, now feudal and divided into hostile sections ? would find a more certain greatness than through the ignoble conquest of its smaller neighbors, or through the inhumane struggle that, by possessing them, it would open up against the powers of the globe for the domination of the world.[3]
They are our men, and we delight in seeing them advance and triumph in the difficult art of collaborating, which is the unique secret of the welfare of the peoples, and the only guarantee of their freedom. [4]
To be good is the only way to be happy. To be educated is the only way to be free.[5]
It was precisely in Latin America that the most original currents of the cultural movement of so-called Western civilization arose in the last 50 years. These include, among others:
The renewal of socialist ideas generated by the Cuban Revolution, which for us are represented in Fidel Castro and Ernesto Guevara, and which inspired many other social movements with the same aspirations in the latter half of the 20th century.
An esthetic view of the world, expressed in schools of universal scope and impact, such as Alejo Carpentier?s magical realist literature, and the great masters of Latin America?s so-called ?literary boom,? without forgetting the epic event that transformed the Spanish language, whose pioneering architects, Martí and Rubén Darío, stimulated a creative and innovative approach in all areas of the fine arts.
The philosophical and ethical social ideas of Latin American liberation theology, analyzed not simply as a theological phenomenon of Christianity but as a revolutionary proposition, based on the kingdom of this world.
The Bolivarian revolution proposed and called for by President Chávez.
The New Latin American cinema, the most recent opening for Latin America and Caribbean creativity in the arts and communications.
The popular education movement, whose concepts and experiences have resulted in a universal consensus among international bodies and governments. As part of this, the study of Paulo Freire?s educational ideas should be a priority.
Obviously, in-depth research is required. We suggest doing this based on the elective method of the Cuban philosophical tradition, the life and works of the precursors: Francisco de Miranda, Simón Rodríguez, Félix Varela, and José de la Luz y Caballero. They can show us the invisible threads that unite people in history, as Martí told us. They adopted the highest philosophical, political, and social ideas of the old world, reshaped them, and in this way conceived Our America.
The principal objective of the International Conference is TO ORGANIZE A PROGRAM INSPIRED BY THE IDEAS OF MARTÍ, under the title ?Alternativa Martiana para las Américas (ALMA)??the Martí Alternative for the Americas.
CONFERENCE PROGRAM BY TOPIC
Martí: Synthesis of the universal ideas of his time
1) The presence of Simón Bolívar in Martí
2) The presence of Benito Juárez in Martí
3) The links between Abraham Lincoln and Latin American thought
4) The presence of North American thought in Martí
5) The presence of other currents of Latin American thought in Martí
6) Karl Marx and the thought of José Martí
7) The presence of Félix Varela, José de la Luz, and other Cuban thinkers in the works of José Martí
Martí: Relevance of his political ideas today
1) The presence of Martí?s thought in Cuba?s revolutionary struggles (Mella, Guiteras, Fidel, etc.)
2) Martí?s thought and the Cuban Revolution
3) Martí?s thought and revolutionary struggles in Latin America
4) Latin America today as illuminated by Martí?s ideas
5) The current stage of imperialism and what José Martí foresaw
José Martí and the premise today that ?A better world is possible?
1) Premises for putting forth a new body of social thought based on Martí?s ideas and the best of Latin American and universal thought
2) Defining in the most universal manner the idea of ?justice as the first rule of culture?
3) The need to put into practice the concept ?Unite to Win? in face of the imperialist practice of ?Divide and Conquer?
4) The threats facing humanity today and the need for a program to turn this reality around
5) Martí and the goal of ?A better world is possible:? How to achieve it?
6) Roots of Liberation Theology in José Martí?s ideas
José Martí, culture, education, law, and the social sciences in the struggles of Latin America today
1) The role of culture and its importance in safeguarding humanity.
2) Martí, culture, and the concept of universalizing culture
3) Social sciences, law, and their relationship to a new body of thought in Latin America
4) The role of universities and their relationship to social movements. The experiences of Latin America and the world
5) The youth and student movement: Challenges in face of the policy of depoliticization by imperialism and neoliberal capitalism
6) The workers and farmers movement and the need to open up space within social struggles for their rights and for taking power
7) José Martí?s approach to pedagogy and education in Latin America: Relevance of the concept ?To be educated in order to be free?
FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES FOR CREATING THE MARTÍ ALTERNATIVE FOR THE AMERICAS
1) Approval of the objectives of the Martí Alternative for the Americas. Its programmatic foundation should be broad enough to encompass all tendencies and so it is not monopolized by a single political tendency. It should range from Liberation Theology to Communist Parties, but in a pluralist forum in which we are unified by José Martí?s ideas.
2) Approval of a manifesto for the creation of national and regional committees in Latin America and the Caribbean. Possibility of involving all countries in the region, as well as the United States, Asia, Africa, and Europe.
3) Approval of a working program of actions for the short, medium, and long term.
4) Defining strategies for the consolidation of this movement.
PARTICIPANTS
Participation is open to well-known figures, academics, researchers, journalists, artists, intellectuals, professionals, and any other interested individuals from Mexico, Cuba, the United States, Canada, and other countries in Latin America and the world who agree with the thematic program of this initial conference, which will launch ALMA, and who share the event?s goals.
FORMAT FOR THE EVENT
The event will be held in plenary sessions with lectures, workshops, commissions, and working groups organized thematically to facilitate the drafting of final documents, including the Call or Manifesto and other objectives specified in the fifth thematic group.
SPECIAL GUESTS
The event will include special guests who will give major talks addressing topics from the event?s program, and who will also lead the work commissions. These special guests will include Dr. Armando Hart Dávalos and well-known individuals from the United States and Latin America.
REGISTRATION AND PRESENTATION OF PAPERS
In order to achieve the projected results, registration of delegates will close on May 2, 2009, and everyone is asked to choose their preferred topics when registering.
Participants who present papers should send them to the Organizing Committee before February 24, 2009, with a summary of no more than three pages in letter format, to be included in the documents distributed to delegates when they receive their credentials for the event.
Participants will pay a registration fee of US$50 or its equivalent in Mexican pesos. Participants will be recognized and listed as founders of ALMA.
ORGANIZING COMMITTEE
Honorary president: Dr. Armando Hart Dávalos, president of the Cuban National Commission of the Martí Program
1. President: Dr. Jorge Cuéllar Montoya, President of the José Martí Cultural Society of Monterrey
2. Executive secretary: Dr. Águeda Marisel Oliva Calvo, Rector of the José Martí Institute of Higher Education
3. Secretary of the Scientific Program: Dr. Mario Alberto Nájera, Coordinator of the José Martí Department at the Autonomous University of Guadalajara
4. Eulogio Rodríguez Millares, professional convention organizer
5. Other active members of the Organizing Committee:
Financial secretaries: Carlos G. Caballero Quiñones and Carlos Caballero Hernández, president and member, respectively, of the José Martí Cultural Foundation of Torreón
Secretary of credentials: Dr. Deysi Anisia Alvarez Guerra, José Martí Institute of Higher Education
Promotion and publicity: Dr. Mario Nieves, UNESCO Committee for Northern Mexico
Tourism Secretariat: organizer of related and tourist activities for participants and those accompanying them
Coordinators of the Thematic Working Groups:
1) Erasmo Torres and Ernesto Villareal Landeros: ?Martí: Synthesis of the universal ideas of his time?
2) National Commission of the Martí Program and Center for the Study of José Martí: ?Martí: Relevance of his political ideas today?
3) Juárez-Martí Studies Center: ?José Martí and the premise today that ?A better world is possible?
4) Dr. Marisel Oliva: ?José Martí, culture, education, law, and the social sciences in the struggles of Latin America today?
5) Dr. Jorge Cuéllar and Dr. Armando Hart: ?FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES FOR CREATING THE MARTÍ ALTERNATIVE FOR THE AMERICAS?
A second notice and final conference call will be issued in October, including hotel rates, a detailed program, and names of all confirmed special guests, as well as information on the Internet account for delegate registration. The hotel serving as the conference site will offer a special rate for all delegates, and the working sessions will be held there.
For more information, contact Dr. Águeda Marisel Oliva Calvo at:
E-mail: insjosemartimty@josemarti.edu.mx, marisel.oliva@josemarti.edu.mx, or mariseloliva@yahoo.com.mx. Tel.: (011) 52-81-8343-9356 and 9358.
