A debate over the prospects for United States hospitality interests to lead the way in thawing relations with Cuban interests is the featured case study in the November 2007 issue of Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly (CQ).

The debate, comprising four articles, is available at no charge from Cornell's Center for Hospitality Research here (Adobe .pdf).

"This case study of Cuba's hotel industry is timely, given the situation in Cuba," said Cornell Quarterly editor Linda Canina, an associate professor at the hotel school. "This set of articles updates the CQ's earlier examination of Cuba's tourism prospects in relation to U.S. interests."

The keynote article for the case study of possible connections between Cuba’s hospitality industry and U.S. interests is “Cuba at a Crossroads: Can the U.S. Hospitality Industry Help Shape a 'New Cuba'?," written by Sergei Khrushchev, Tony L. Henthorne, and Michael S. LaTour. Each author has conducted some form of research in Cuba, but lead author Khrushchev, son of the late Soviet premier, brings his unusual perspective to the discussion.

The article outlines ways that the United States hospitality industry can promote a thaw in relations and a renewal of knowledge and trust between the people of Cuba and the United States. At the moment, the authors report a deep distrust between the people of the two countries, despite the role of U.S. dollars as hard currency in Cuba.

Sergei Khrushchev, Ph.D., is senior fellow in international studies at the Watson Institute for International Studies at Brown University; Tony L. Henthorne, Ph.D., is chair of tourism management and professor of marketing at the University of Southern Mississippi; and Michael S. LaTour, Ph.D., is chair and professor of marketing at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Commentaries on the article come from:

·         John M. Kirk, of Dalhousie University, who points out that the continuing embargo of Cuba has had the chief effect of excluding U.S. interests from a potentially lucrative market;

·         James Macaulay, of Mount Saint Vincent University, who cautions that even if the embargo ends, U.S. hotel operators might find a hostile environment in its centrally controlled economy, as well as a chilly reception by Cuba’s hotel managers, whose financial position would be threatened; and

·         Kenneth Backman, of Clemson University, who sees no welcome in Cuba for U.S operators, especially since Cuba would want no additional leakage of tourism revenues and since the embargo remains in place.