The panel discussion Tribute to Fidel Castro on his 90th Birthday will be held on August 12, during the World Social Forum (WSF) 2016, taking place August 9-14, in this Canadian city.
The event, dedicated to the leader of the Cuban Revolution, will be held at the WSF’s headquarters at the University of Quebec, in Montreal.
The WSF is the largest gathering of civil society to find solutions to the problems of our time. Launched in Brazil in 2001, every year the Forum brings together thousands of individuals from around the world, who participate in numerous activities.
With the support of over 200 civil society organizations across Canada and the world, the proposal to hold the 2016 edition of the Forum in Montreal was formally accepted by the International WSF Council during the previous edition of the event, held in Tunisia, March 2015.
This year the forum is taking place for the first time in the northern hemisphere. To date, 12,506 individuals from 20 countries have registered to participate in the event, under the maxim “Another world is needed. Together it is possible.”
The first of the two panel sessions in honor of Fidel will be led by Dr. Claude Morin, retired History professor at the University of Montreal, where he worked in 1973 and 2006. His main research areas were Mexico during the colonial period and 20th century Cuba and Central America. He has written seven books and 30 articles and book chapters. In 2006 Morin participated in the Memory and Future International Colloquium: Cuba and Fidel, held in Havana, in honor of the leader of the Cuban Revolution’s 80th birthday. Morin will present the topic “Fidel, the leader and his people.”
Meanwhile Arnold August, Canadian journalist and author of Democracy in Cuba and the 1997–98 Elections and more recently Cuba and its neighbors: Democracy in Motion, who also participated in the 2006 Memory and Future International Colloquium, will head the second discussion, “Fidel, the anti-imperialist combatant.“
According to WSF Montreal 2016, this August 13 “Fidel celebrates 90 years of a life he has assumed as few men on this planet. His stature as champion of human development and international solidarity has made Cuba a significant player on the world stage.
”His longevity has made him the most experienced leader in the world, a tireless fighter for all the causes that have universal value (education, health, peace, solidarity, justice, environment protection, against hegemony, plunder, and neo-liberalism). Fidel certainly stands among men of exception. This anniversary calls upon us to explore certain aspects of his work and personality.”
(Granma)