Jonathan Hammond

12122019

Johnson

Breaking Barriers: The Cuban Missile Crisis

Process paper

During this project, the hardest part was working with the topic I had selected to

formulate my thesis. I chose my topic before looking into this year’s theme, ‘Breaking Barriers.’

As I investigated the Cuban Missile Crisis, it seemed that more barriers were created as opposed

to destroyed. This led to difficulty in creating my thesis. However, once I continued to research

the different aspects of the Cuban Missile Crisis, I found that communications were a major

barrier during the Cuban Missile Crisis. This barrier wasn’t broken until months later with the

Moscow-Washington Hotline, but it did demonstrate the need for faster and more effective

communication between the U.S. and the Soviet Union.

Once I had narrowed down my topic to communication, I searched for a database of

primary source documents that would provide an accurate timeline of the Cuban Missile Crisis

along with adequate primary source documents. This ended up being JFK Library, a site online

with hundreds of primary source documents surrounding the Cold War.

A website seemed to be the most effective way of communicating my ideas, because it

allowed me to use pictures and films to convey my message without having to create a

documentary. I chose not to create a documentary because I am inexperienced and unfamiliar

with the software needed to create a documentary. However, I have access to the resources

needed to create a website, and websites can be easily accessed from anywhere. This was

especially helpful because I often work in many different locations, ranging from my school to

my home to the road (on road trips).

My thesis also required me to research the Moscow-Washington Hotline. I was unable to

find any primary source material on the topic, so I was forced to turn to newspaper articles from

the Cold War era, such as the NY Times article used.

This NHD website is the culmination of hours of research (much of it ended up not being

used) and work. I have learned all about the events of the Cuban Missile Crisis and much of the

Cold War - barriers were built and torn down, and this is only a snapshot of a larger picture.

Though many barriers were torn down as a result of the Cuban Missile Crisis and the

Moscow-Washington Hotline, some remain today, as seen in tensions between the U.S. and

Russia.