Havana, Cuba.-The exercise of memory as an act of critical thinking and emancipation centers debates of the 6th International Colloquium on Cultural Diversity in the Caribbean, inaugurated today in this capital.

Organized by Casa de las Américas, the event will be held until Friday and brings together representatives from various countries around a program that includes exhibitions, conferences, concerts and book presentations on topics such as geopolitics, heritage management, and decolonization.

According to Camila Valdes, director of Centro de Estudios del Caribe (Center of Caribbean Studies), the event joins the celebration in Cuba of the 50th anniversary of the Latin American Council of Social Sciences and constitutes an important part of the 2017 actions of the UNESCO Chair for Intercultural Dialogue in Our America.

Contemporary research privileges European and American realities. Few of them focus on the Caribbean as an area of geographical, temporary, cultural and linguistic crossings and borders, she said during the opening session.

In this context, the exercise of memory is a desire for identity claim. The importance of the teaching and recognition of history and a mnemonic practice linked to identity has been pointed out, the expert added.

She also said that the conference will focus on events with a significant impact in the region such as the transfer of the Danish Virgin Islands to the United States and the implementation of the law passed by the Congress of that country to grant US citizenship to Puerto Ricans.