Finally we have an analysis of the significance of the 1921 celebrations of the first centenary of Central America's independence. In this book Patricia Fumero follows in the tradition of William Beezley, Silvia Alejandra Palermo, Mónica Lacarrieu, and Annick Lempérière, among others, who have analyzed the 1910 centenary celebrations of the beginning of the independence process in Mexico and Argentina. But Fumero studies national independence centenary celebrations throughout a whole region instead of a single country. These commemorations present an extra layer of complexity because 1921 marked also the last real effort to re-create a united Central American republic. The reason is what Patricia Fumero calls “dual identity,” which reflects the unique situation of the Central American countries, a group of entities that have lived separately since 1838 celebrating their common past almost a century later while attempting to, once again, forge a unified federal republic (p. xxvii).
Her book...