Gay Pride in Cuba: Without a March, Matrimony or Adoption

14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 28 June 2019 — Tonight, in the privacy of their home and surrounded by some friends, René and Richard will have a symbolic wedding ceremony. “We were waiting for the Constitution to permit gay marriage to do it, but it looks like that will happen when it snows in Cuba,” jokes … Continue reading “Gay Pride in Cuba: Without a March, Matrimony or Adoption”

Laura Pollán Ladies in White Civic Movement Letter to President Obama

10 March 2016 His Excellency Mr. Barack Obama President of the United States of America I extend to you the most cordial welcome to our country and wish you a happy stay in this land, which you can now feel as your own. Cuba and the United States of America share a long history of … Continue reading “Laura Pollán Ladies in White Civic Movement Letter to President Obama”

Marching on their own? / Miriam Celaya

The official press has been announcing the parade this May 1st with a newly added component to the “army” of workers that will march in support of the revolution and socialism: the self-employed. I’ve been reflecting on the theme (I’m showing an alarming tendency to reflections) and I cannot quite understand the issue. Aren’t the … Continue reading “Marching on their own? / Miriam Celaya”

Do We Have Changes? / Fernando Dámaso

Taking into account the time elapsed between the first and the second papal visit (fourteen years and two months), for most of my generation, this was the last chance to see a pope at home. The Pope came, bowed, prayed, celebrated two Masses, talked, met and prayed to God for all Cubans. In the media … Continue reading “Do We Have Changes? / Fernando Dámaso”

Cuban History Marches Backward / Dimas Castellanos

For any society, it will be frustrating if its history, instead of progressing forward, heads backwards by leaps and bounds. This is the case for Cuban society, whose situation with regards to freedom and rights is the same or worse than it was leading to the Ten Years’ War. In mid-nineteenth century Cuba, when the … Continue reading “Cuban History Marches Backward / Dimas Castellanos”

CALL TO MARCH: ZAPATA LIVES! / Antunez

February 7 2011 The National Orlando Zapata Tamayo Civic Resistance and Disobedience Front is calling on all activists and members of the Cuban resistance to participate in the “Zapata Lives!” march, which will take place throughout the nation on February 23rd, the one year anniversary of the assassination of political prisoner Orlando Zapata. Brothers, Sisters, … Continue reading “CALL TO MARCH: ZAPATA LIVES! / Antunez”

Updating the Model Versus Comprehensive Changes / Dimas Castellanos

(Originally published on Monday, October 10, 2010 on the site www.diariodecuba.com) In updating the model — a euphemism used to describe the changes that are taking place in the Cuban economy —  what is happening is the same thing that happened with Spanish colonialism in the late nineteenth century. Spain took so long to grant … Continue reading “Updating the Model Versus Comprehensive Changes / Dimas Castellanos”

The Cuban Government Dismisses Fernando Rojas, Despite His ‘Revolutionary Loyalty’

14ymedio, Madrid, January 9, 2024 — The deputy ministers of Culture Fernando Rojas Gutiérrez and Kenelma Carvajal Pérez were dismissed from their positions on Monday, January 8, and will be replaced by two much younger faces, those of Lizette Martínez Luzardo, 36 years old and up to now director general of Cultural Policies, and Lillitsy … Continue reading “The Cuban Government Dismisses Fernando Rojas, Despite His ‘Revolutionary Loyalty’”

With Surveillance, Clubs and Internet Cuts, the Cuban Regime Mobilizes to Prevent a New ’11J’ Day of Protests

14ymedio, Juan Izquierdo, Havana, June 11, 2023 — Messages by phone, by word-of-mouth, and “orientations from above”: the tension in Cuban workplaces during the second anniversary of the ’11J’ — 11th July 2021 — protests began very early this Tuesday. In each school, in each company, someone had to remain “on guard” and with a club in … Continue reading “With Surveillance, Clubs and Internet Cuts, the Cuban Regime Mobilizes to Prevent a New ’11J’ Day of Protests”

‘In Cuba, There Is No Good or Bad Opponent: The Opponent Is Whoever Confronts the Regime’

14ymedio, Havana, 29 April 2023 — According to French reporter Francis Matéo, the key to understanding Cuba’s political convulsions is to track the regime’s money: its phantom accounts abroad, the debts it cannot pay, what it charges for sending medical brigades and the budget it allocates to propaganda. The wear and tear of its methods … Continue reading “‘In Cuba, There Is No Good or Bad Opponent: The Opponent Is Whoever Confronts the Regime’”

November 15: Chronicle of a War Foretold / Jeovany Jimenez Vega

Translator’s Note: The screenshot above is taken from a social media post in 2021 by the Archipelago Collective. The essay below by Jeovany Jiménez Vega appeared on his blog on November 9, 2021, six days before the originally-scheduled date of a protest planned by the organization.  15 November 2021 Civic March for Change The regime’s response … Continue reading “November 15: Chronicle of a War Foretold / Jeovany Jimenez Vega”

An 11J Protester Who was Imprisoned in Cuba was Arrested by the US Coast Guard

14ymedio, Havana, 12 December 2022 — Adonis Alexander Remon León is the last of the Cuban demonstrators arrested on July 11, 2021 (11J), who managed to reach the United States. According to what his mother, Elizabeth León, told Radio and Televisión Martí, the young man, 28, “is under investigation” on an American Coast Guard ship to … Continue reading “An 11J Protester Who was Imprisoned in Cuba was Arrested by the US Coast Guard”

Ktivo Disidente, Sentenced to Jail for Asking for Freedom for Political Prisoners in Cuba

14ymedio, Havana, 29 November 2022 — On Tuesday, Cuban activist and opponent, Carlos Ernesto Díaz González, known as Ktivo Disidente, was sentenced to two years and six months in prison for disobedience and contempt. Díaz González had spent almost seven months in Ariza prison, in Cienfuegos, after he asked for freedom for political prisoners while … Continue reading “Ktivo Disidente, Sentenced to Jail for Asking for Freedom for Political Prisoners in Cuba”

Cuban Singer/Songwriter Pablo Milanes Dies at 77

14ymedio, Havana, 21 November 2022 — Cuban singer/songwriter Pablo Milanés died in Madrid on Tuesday at the age of 77. His death was confirmed by sources close to the artist. Milanés had been hospitalized for several weeks with an inflamed gallbladder and a kidney infection, which had forced him to cancel several concerts. Milanés moved … Continue reading “Cuban Singer/Songwriter Pablo Milanes Dies at 77”

15 November, The Day the Cuban Dictatorship Lost all its Masks

14ymedio, Yunior García Aguilera, Madrid, 16 November 2022 — Ever since we first called for the Civic March for Change we knew that it would be a practical impossibility to make it happen. Even so, it was worth it to make them unmask themselves to show their absolutely tyrannical character, above all in a context … Continue reading “15 November, The Day the Cuban Dictatorship Lost all its Masks”