Perceptions of Cuba : Canadian and American policies in comparative perspective /

Behavior emanates from perceptions, which in turn are based on self-identity. This simple, constructionist explanation of international relations is demonstrated in the contrast of US-Cuba and Canada-Cuba relations. Though the US case of self-righteous hostility is familiar to most readers, the Canadian historical record makes this study interesting. Wylie (McMaster Univ., Ontario, Canada) notes that officials across the party spectrum have visited Cuba regularly, despite its record of domestic repression. Cuba's questionable domestic behavior notwithstanding, Canada stands by a commitment to good citizenship, engagement, international law, and business as usual. The author demonstrates her thesis with careful treatment of the shootdown of the Brothers to the Rescue flight in 1996 and periodic allegations that Cuba's biological research could result in bioterrorism. The third side of this triangle is obvious: the US and Canada face off with unceasing incomprehension. Most important in this regard is the Helms-Burton Act, an extraterritorial penalty affecting any Canadian who deals commercially with both Cuba and the US. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduate, graduate, and research collections. E. M. Dew Fairfield University