When the World Went Upside down: A Conversation with Luis Martínez-Fernández

Journalists, it’s often said, write the first drafts of history because they are the first recorders and commentators of current events and social realities.  And the last couple of years have been a meaty first draft.  A global pandemic, a rise in authoritarianism, economic chaos, war in Europe, and now Artificial Intelligence that will write essays for you, and probably one day curate podcasts.  Has the world gone upside?  Will it right itself?  Instead of searching fro the prolific crystal ball, Dr. Luis Martínez-Fernández suggests that we get the historians involved to understand how broader social processes connect these issues, and how crises have been handled in the past.  Can the perspective of history seriously work to guide societies out of crisis and chaos?  Tune in to find out. In When the World Turned Upside Down: Politics, Culture and the Unimaginable Events of 2019-2022, award-winning historian and nationally syndicated columnist Luis Martínez-Fernández adeptly examines current U.S. and worldwide events from the intersection of opinion journalism, chronicling, and historical writing. This rare combination of methods and approaches offers readers unique insights on how history sheds light on contemporary matters and how our present preoccupations shape the way we look at and understand the past. The book, thus, invites readers into a dialogue between past and present, and at times, the near future. Dr. Luis Martínez-Fernández is a historian, university professor, author, consultant, and public speaker, whose fields of expertise include Latin America, the Caribbean, education, and Latino/Hispanic politics, culture, and society. Born in Havana, Cuba and raised in Lima, Peru and San Juan, Puerto Rico, he holds B.A. and M.A. degrees in History from the University of Puerto Rico and a Ph.D. in History from Duke University. Dr. Martínez-Fernández has vast experience as consultant in the areas of education, diversity, transcultural communications, outreach, media, and publishing. A Pegasus Professor of History at the University of Central Florida since 2004, he is recognized as one of the most prolific and influential scholars in the field of Caribbean history. His publications include articles in Cuban Studies, Slavery and Abolition, Latin American Research Review, The Americas, Caribbean Studies, and in numerous edited volumes. Follow Dr. Bob on Twitter:  @ProfessorHuish