Maile Speakman

Research Interests: Cuban & Caribbean Studies, Queer & Feminist Theory, U.S. Empire, Digital Culture, Postcolonial Thought, Global Cities, Capitalism & Performativity, Ethnography My dissertation research centers on an alternative media network in Cuba called el paquete semanal. More broadly, I work on the politics of internet access, telecommunications infrastructure, markets, digital culture, and U.S. imperialism in Cuba. Before studying at Yale, I received a B.A. in Sociology/Anthropology summa cum laude from Lewis & Clark College and an M.A. in Latin American Studies from Tulane University. For my M.A. thesis, “Performance Cubano: Reading Queer Theory in Havana,” I employed ethnographic and archival methods to document the emergence of U.S. queer theory in Havana in the early 2000s. This project built on my previous work on the policing of queer and countercultural youth space in contemporary Havana.