José León Suárez y la «diplomacia de los pueblos»: Iberoamericanismo, reformismos y festejos Centenarios en la década de 1920

Latin America’s Centennial celebrations were opportunities for governments and other institutions to affirm both national identities and international alliances through formal and informal diplomacy. These relations involved the creation of transnational identities. International Law scholar and university professor José León Suárez, considered «the apostle of Iberian-Americanism» was particularly active in those celebrations. This paper analyses understudied aspects of Suarez’s journey as a cultural mediator and his role in the creation of an Iberian-Americanist transnational identity. It examines his participation in several Centennial commemorations, in which he connected his Iberian-Americanist program with international legal disputes, the social reformist agenda, and the process of university reform in Latin America.