English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
Comments on the recent speech by General-President Raul Castro can be heard in a pharmacy line as well as in an almendrón.* People in general are pleased that the country’s top leadership is finally acknowledging the presence of the invasive social weed that until now seems to have been growing unnoticed. Cubans, with our ability to adapt … Continue reading “Why Not Just Dissolve the CDR? / Regina Coyula”
More than half of the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution (CDR) of Havana did not celebrate their 52nd anniversary of September 27-28. This celebration was marked at 90% only in the central and eastern zones of the country. September 27 was celebrated in anticipation of the September 28 day of the 52nd anniversary of the … Continue reading “Havana neighborhoods reject the Cuban government by not celebrating the 52nd anniversary of the CDRs / Anddy Sierra Alvarez”
As has been the trend in recent years, the once nurtured and animated Committee for the Defense of the Revolution (CDR) “fiestas” on September 27, have been added to the list of Revolutionary anniversaries on the way to extinction. Just by chance, for personal reasons, I was crossing the city last Thursday and could observe … Continue reading “Where are the CDR Revolutionaries? / Miriam Celaya”
The stew was cooked on firewood collected by some neighbors, the flags hung in the middle of the block and the shouts of Viva! went on past midnight. A ritual repeated with more or less enthusiasm every September 27 throughout the Island. The eve of the 52nd anniversary of the founding of the Committees for … Continue reading “CDR: Citizen Representation or Political Control? / Yoani Sanchez”
On September 28, 1960, while homemade bombs and firecrackers were being detonated by his political opponents, an angry Fidel Castro created the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution (CDR). From the balcony of the north wing of the Presidential Palace, the guerrilla commander, recently returned from a tour of New York, argued the need … Continue reading “CDR, Castro’s Popular Weapon / Iván García”
On the same street and during the same night, solar panels were stolen from a nursing home. 14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, June 16, 2026 — The Metropolitan Bank branch located at Dolores and 18th Street in Lawton, Havana, was robbed Monday night during a blackout, as confirmed by 14ymedio at the scene. “They broke … Continue reading “Bank Robbed in Havana Hours Before Pension Payments Were to Be Distributed”
By Julio M. Shiling | Jun. 5, 2026 — For decades, opponents of economic pressure against the Castro-Communist regime insisted that sanctions did not work. According to this conventional wisdom, Havana had learned to survive every restriction, adapt to every obstacle, and transform every hardship into political propaganda. Yet the dramatic developments following President Donald … Continue reading “Castroism’s Empire Crumbles”
Testimonies gathered by ’14ymedio’ in several Havana neighborhoods demonstrate the low turnout at the tables where people could sign spontaneously 14ymedio, Havana, 26 April 2026 — The Observatory of Academic Freedom (OLA) denounced a “coercive pattern” in the island’s academic spaces to participate in the “process” called “My signature for the Fatherland,” initiated a week … Continue reading “The Observatory of Academic Freedom Denounces the “Coercion” in Universities To Sign “For the Fatherland””
In addition to setting up tables for the initiative, the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution are visiting citizens house by house. 14ymedio, Mercedes García, Sancti Spíritus, April 20, 2026 / Cuba’s state workers have already been ordered to participate in the “process” called “My Signature for the Homeland,” initiated this Sunday with his … Continue reading “The Order To Sign “For the Fatherland” Has Been Given Throughout the Country in a Campaign Led by Díaz-Canel”
The New York Times points to suspicions that the vessel may be gathering intelligence as it passes through the Caribbean. 14ymedio, Havana, March 26, 2026 – U.S. concerns surrounding the Russian tanker Anatoly Kolodkin, which is heading toward Cuba, thus defying U.S. sanctions imposed on both Russia and Cuba, have put the U.S. Navy on … Continue reading “The Proximity of the Tanker Anatoly Kolodokin Sets Off Alarms About Russian Espionage in Cuba”
From several provinces, they demand that a mobilization like that in the capital be called. 14ymedio, Miguel García, Holguín, October 6, 2025 — This weekend’s garbage collection “offensive” in Havana is having an unwelcome effect on the authorities. Residents in several provinces are clamoring for a similar mobilization to clear their streets of the mountains … Continue reading ““This Isn’t Havana, but Send the Military To Pick Up the Trash,” Residents in Holguín, Cuba”
While donations are at a minimum, people increasingly offer in exchange for money, food, or even a high-end cell phone. 14ymedio, Madrid, 23 June 2025 — With a population estimated at 404,037, the health authorities of Sancti Spíritus estimate that 12,000 blood donations are needed throughout the year. However, in 2024 they were just 7,252, … Continue reading “If You Need Blood in Cuba, You Will Probably Have To Buy It”
I had lost the interest and passion that had taken me out of my province and placed me among the top ranks of Medicine. 14ymedio, Liz Ashelle Díaz Gómez, June 2, 2025 — I live in the state of Hidalgo, Mexico, in a town that is two hours from Mexico City. It’s small and colorful, … Continue reading “I’m Leaving, I’m Leaving Cuba, I’m Going Away”
The distrust surrounding the Correa candidate was fueled by her ideological sympathy for the authoritarian regimes of Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua. 14ymedio, Yoani Sánchez, Generation Y, 25 April 2025 — When I was a child, the logo of a man with a sombrero and a machete belonging to the Committees for the Defense of the … Continue reading “The Shadow of the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution Over Ecuador”
14ymedio, Miguel García, Holguin, 16 April 2025 — On the shoulders of the Cuban patient lies not only the responsibility to get syringes and drugs before surgery. Now, more and more often, carrying a blood donation is a prerequisite for undergoing an operation. In Holguín, those who do not have someone who, for friendship or … Continue reading ““In Cuban Hospitals, if You Don’t Donate Blood They Won’t Operate on You””