The graffiti appeared in a busy area where thousands of people pass by every day.
14ymedio, Miguel García, Holguín, 4 August 2025 — Residents in the Alex Urquiola neighborhood of Holguín woke up this weekend to find a word painted on a deep blue wall: “Freedom.” The graffiti, written in uneven and hasty letters, appeared on the stretch between the La Barra Dalama guarapera [sugar cane drink stand] and the old gas station known as La Curva, a busy area where thousands of people pass through every day.
The sign draws attention not only for its direct message, but also for the way it was written, with a final “t” that betrays a spelling error but, for many residents, reflects the urgency and spontaneity with which it was created. “Whoever wrote it must have written it exactly as it sounded in their mind,” commented a neighbor who stopped in front of the improvised mural. “You can’t spell a word that’s never used correctly,” added another local woman with a wry smile that summed up the widespread frustration with the situation on the island.
“You can’t spell a word well if you never use it.”
The graffiti is the latest in a string of public expressions of discontent that have become more frequent in Holguín—and throughout Cuba—in recent years. And that have increased in recent months.
In mid-June, authorities in Holguín were busy early in the morning erasing some 20 anti-government graffiti on the wall of the Mayabe cemetery, even scraping with machetes, while Interior Ministry agents, supported by several cars and motorcycles, controlled the area and watched for anyone who approached. A tricycle driver recounted how he couldn’t even take out his phone for fear of being arrested, while a tanker truck loaded with lime waited to paint the extensive wall and cover the remnants of the messages as quickly as possible.
In mid-June, 20 anti-government graffiti appeared on the wall of the Mayabe cemetery.
In the Lenin neighborhood, also in Holguín, graffiti bearing the phrase “Down with communism” appeared on one of the buildings in May. Authorities reacted quickly, attempting to cover it with reddish paint, but the faded color left the message visible, creating a palpable irony. The act of censorship ended up reinforcing the phrase.
In May, the phrase “Down with communism” was painted on one of the buildings in the Lenin neighborhood.
The head of the U.S. mission to Cuba, Mike Hammer, who was visiting the city, even posed for a photo in front of the sign, emphasizing that Cubans should be able to express themselves without fear of reprisals.
In the case of this new graffiti on Alex Urquiola, however, the word “Freedom” remained visible all weekend, becoming a topic of conversation for pedestrians and drivers passing by. Some even speculate that the authorities’ failure to remove the message could be due to the fact that the experts have run out of resources to analyze the frequent protest graffiti. One much more suspicious Holguín resident sarcastically commented: “Maybe there’s not even any paint left.”
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