Cuba: How to Convert a Distinguished Pioneer Into a Vile Elvispreslian Worm

14ymedio, Xavier Carbonell, Salamanca, 6 March 2024 — Carlos Lechuga Hevia was a machine for the Revolution. His grandfather, Colonel Manuel Lechuga was a machine for Independence. What type of machine is his grandson, Carlos D. Lechuga? His first last name is barely a letter, an elipsis, interfering with the nice ring of the clan … Continue reading “Cuba: How to Convert a Distinguished Pioneer Into a Vile Elvispreslian Worm”

From Worms to Repatriates: Cuba’s Exile Community / Lynn Cruz

Havana Times, Lynn Cruz, 27 February 2018 – Ever since I began making Political Theater, one thing hasn’t stopped tormenting me, it’s almost psychological torture. It has something to do with the fact that you end up living in a constant state of paranoia. A prisoner of labels in a world that doesn’t have time … Continue reading “From Worms to Repatriates: Cuba’s Exile Community / Lynn Cruz”

The "Worms" and the Future of Cuba / Iván García

Ivan Garcia, 19 January 2018 — Ana Gálvez, now 72, spent eight months picking sweet potatoes, yuccas and squash in a state agricultural enterprise outside of Havana before she was allowed to leave for the United States in 1971. “They treated us as if we were prisoners or slaves. The food was disgusting. We had to work twelve … Continue reading “The "Worms" and the Future of Cuba / Iván García”

The Documentary “Worm” Goes Undercover on the Island / Manuel Guerra Perez

In digital format and DVD media, it is alarming part of the population that says it is unaware of the siege of the dissidents. HAVANA, Cuba – The documentary “Gusano” (Worm), produced by Estado de Sats, is being shared hand-to-hand on DVD and digitally and has generated many reactions among people who are not dissidents … Continue reading “The Documentary “Worm” Goes Undercover on the Island / Manuel Guerra Perez”

GUSANO (Worm) – A Video from Estado de SATS

If the video doesn’t appear try this link. If you don’t see the subtitles — start the video and then, on the bottom right, there will be a little “CC” box. Click there and ENGLISH will appear and the subtitles will show up. If an ad appears on the screen, close it and the subtitles … Continue reading “GUSANO (Worm) – A Video from Estado de SATS”

The Metamorphosis of a Butterfly into a Worm as Staged in the Court Theater of the Castros / Angel Santiesteban #Cuba

Intellectual Repression in Cuba How to Convert the Writer Ángel Santiesteban from Butterfly to Worm by Amir Valle Wanted: Angel Santiesteban – Taken from Rodrigo Kuang’s Blog In Number 3 of this magazine, in my personal column, I wrote about an issue I was very curious about then: how the political regime that prevails in … Continue reading “The Metamorphosis of a Butterfly into a Worm as Staged in the Court Theater of the Castros / Angel Santiesteban #Cuba”

Cuba, the Diaspora and the "Revolutionary Worms" / Iván García

When Norberto (alias) defected from a sports tournament in Canada, the Cuban authorities, as usual, tried to erase him from the collective memory of fans who deliriously cheered his spectacular shots at the basket. No journalist dared to write his name. Nor tell of his athletic feats. When they tell the history of national basketball, … Continue reading “Cuba, the Diaspora and the "Revolutionary Worms" / Iván García”

WWWAITING FOR THE WWWORMS / Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo

THE DAWN* OF WAITING Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo José Lezama Lima waited for the death of his mother before feeling guilt-free enough to publish the scandalous Paradiso. Virgilio Piñera waited to amass 18 boxes of unedited material before letting himself die of loneliness or of State Security. Dulce María Loynaz sat down, like a character … Continue reading “WWWAITING FOR THE WWWORMS / Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo”

Good Worms and Bad Worms

It was Fidel Castro who, in one of his his typical vitriolic outbursts, during a speech on January 2, 1961 (in what was then the Civic Plaza, today Revolution Plaza), applied the epithet “worms” to those Cubans who dared to criticize his olive green revolution or who decided to leave their homeland. That day he … Continue reading “Good Worms and Bad Worms”

They Confront Us So That We Do Not Confront them

Reinaldo’s cell phone rings: someone is stuck in the elevator during the power cut this Thursday 14ymedio, Yoani Sánchez, Havana, 22 August 2024 — There is a sudden silence. It is daytime, so the signs of the blackout do not appear through a lack of lighting but through the absence of sound. A deep emptiness … Continue reading “They Confront Us So That We Do Not Confront them”

The Day Fidel Castro Admitted the Assault on the Moncada Barracks Was a Flop

On a program intended to commemorate the event, Castro ended up saying publicly that he should have skipped it and gone “straight to the Sierra Maestra.” 14ymedio, Yunior García Aguilera, Madrid, July 17, 2024 — During a taping of the “Roundtable” program in 2000, Fidel Castro showed up unexpectedly at the television studio. “The problem … Continue reading “The Day Fidel Castro Admitted the Assault on the Moncada Barracks Was a Flop”

Three Years Later, What Has Become of the Repressors of 11J?

The change that has taken place in thousands of people has been so profound and rapid that, in other circumstances, it would have taken several decades. 14ymedio, Yoani Sánchez, Havana, 11 July 2024 —  Three years have passed since the historic protests that shook the Cuban streets on 11 July 2021, but it seems like … Continue reading “Three Years Later, What Has Become of the Repressors of 11J?”

Police Harass Journalist José Luis Tan Estrada a Few Days Before the Anniversary of July 11

The reporter was threatened with charges of disobedience and contempt if he publishes content about the protests on social networks 14ymedio, Havana, 6 July 2024 — State Security released journalist José Luis Tan Estrada this Friday after a brief interrogation where they warned him that on July 11, when three years of the 11J protests … Continue reading “Police Harass Journalist José Luis Tan Estrada a Few Days Before the Anniversary of July 11”

A Building in the Middle of Paseo Del Prado in Havana Defies the Law of Gravity

14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, 8 June 2024 — One, two, three and four floors create a giant Jenga on Paseo del Prado, on the corner of Virtudes Street. As in the British game, time has been making pieces out of the building and now Havana is waiting for its imminent fall, in the middle … Continue reading “A Building in the Middle of Paseo Del Prado in Havana Defies the Law of Gravity”

‘The Main Achievement of the Cuban Revolution Is Its Exile’

Writer Jorge Ferrer narrates the traces of totalitarianism in three generations of his family 14ymedio, Madrid, 3 June 2024 — “There are many ways to have encountered the Russian and Cuban revolutions, and end up hurt by them. A lot,” says Jorge Ferrer (b. Havana, 1967). The writer and translator wanted to investigate the stories … Continue reading “‘The Main Achievement of the Cuban Revolution Is Its Exile’”