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The Grenada Revolution - Reflections and Lessons

The Grenada Revolution

Reflections and Lessons

Edited by Wendy C. Grenade
Series: Caribbean Studies Series

Paperback : 9781496807809, 298 pages, 3 tables, February 2016
Hardcover : 9781628461510, 320 pages, 3 tables, January 2015

A detailed examination of the broad implications of Marxist revolution, politics, and the eventual invasion of the island nation

Description

Grenada experienced much turmoil in the 1970s and 1980s, culminating in an armed Marxist revolution, a bloody military coup, and finally in 1983 Operation Urgent Fury, a United States-led invasion. Wendy C. Grenade combines various perspectives to tell a Caribbean story about this revolution, weaving together historical accounts of slain Prime Minister Maurice Bishop, the New Jewel Leftist Movement, and contemporary analysis. There is much controversy. Though the Organization of American States formally requested intervention from President Ronald Reagan, world media coverage was largely negative and skeptical, if not baffled, by the action, which resulted in a rapid defeat and the deposition of the Revolutionary Military Council.

By examining the possibilities and contradictions of the Grenada Revolution, the contributors draw upon thirty years' of hindsight to illuminate a crucial period of the Cold War. Beyond geopolitics, the book interrogates but transcends the nuances and peculiarities of Grenada's political history to situate this revolution in its larger Caribbean and global context. In doing so, contributors seek to unsettle old debates while providing fresh understandings about a critical period in the Caribbean's postcolonial experience. This collection throws into sharp focus the centrality of the Grenada Revolution, offering a timely contribution to Caribbean scholarship and to wider understanding of politics in small developing, postcolonial societies.

Reviews

The confluence of personal retrospective and scholarly accounts of the revolution sets this anthology apart from similar volumes, and offers students of the Grenada Revolution some potentially valuable texts through which to initiate future inquiries. Another welcome contribution of this volume is its emphasis on Grenada’s connections with other Caribbean nations, particularly Cuba and Guyana.

- Bonnie Lucero, Journal of African American History, Spr. 2017, Vol. 102 No. 2