English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
My travels to Najasa — southeast of Camaguey — were marked by my first impressions on arriving. The first time, I was amazed at the hills with cliffs that followed the highway from Cuatro Caminos — the sunny capital — to Manolin, as if the truck had come from Camaguey to bring the mountains of … Continue reading “Najasa Votes Against Itself / Henry Constantin”
In Cuba, contrary to what one might think, even the beaches are places where the Cubans who live here can suffer. Ask the people of Santa Lucia beach in Camaguey. Recently, people from the government told them they would all have to leave. And still there are those who fantasize about the soft changes of … Continue reading “The Beaches Belong to the People (But the People Have an Owner) / Henry Constantín”
Contest website, click here. Share on Facebook +53-53412387 jqn1984@gmail.com http://twitter.com/#!/henryconstantin
By Dagoberto Valdes and the Editorial Board In editorial No. 14 of Convivencia Magazine (www.convivenciacuba.es) of March-April 2010, we said that: “In the last year there has been a visible increase of the natural diversity of expressions of men and women in Cuba. This plurality has been manifested, mainly, in the cultural world. This world … Continue reading “Pedro Pablo Oliva and Henry Constantin: Two Examples of the Blockade on the World of the Cuban Culture / IntraMuros, Dagoberto Valdes”
(This is the story of a trip that I never imagined in my own country. I thank all those who made this experience possible, but I thank much more those who tried to prevent it.) Victor, the silent dean of Art Institute (ISA), next to the driver, without saying a single word; Danae and Rudy, … Continue reading “Kidnapped Trip / Henry Constantín”
Whoever travels to Cuba and doesn’t go to its cemeteries forgets the place where, inevitably, all journeys end. In them lie the tears of the entire island. The infinite Colon cemetery and its mausoleums of millionaires and politicians, La Milagrosa, half the country’s history buried in niches, the tunnels and two-story buildings, the tomb of … Continue reading “The Country That Travels to the Cemetery / Henry Constantín”
In the back, the Cuban flag waves high above the world. Far ahead, the Hicacos peninsula stretches across the horizon. Varadero, the only town on the island that has been spared the rust, grows right there. Just don’t look down, at where we stand. Cardenas, the neighboring city, is just a mishmash of oil, industrial … Continue reading “The Contaminated Flag / Henry Constantín”
There are regions in my country where I still cannot enter. At least not unless if I am loaded with official documents, authorizations, guarantees, and recommendation letters. An entire list can be made out of these things. I’m used to it: In Cuba, one can write – actually, those in power have already done so … Continue reading “Closed, for Cubans / Henry Constantín”
Early morning hours. Eight students from “Marta Abreu” Central University of Las Villas, passengers without tickets on a train. They are between cars, standing or crouching, shivering from the most intense cold in the world. In the door to the right, two cops: they don’t let them pass. At the door to the left, three … Continue reading “Gandhi Smiling in the Wee Hours / Henry Constantín”
Download Rosa Blanca 4 Here September 15, 2010
This is the third issue of La Rosa Blanca, you have to walk a lot in order to publish it, and walk even more to deliver it in a country mute and without internet. Every issue of La Rosa Blanca, which I’ll post in this blog as I’ve done before, since I don’t have any … Continue reading “The Third Issue of La Rosa Blanca Magazine / Henry Constantín”
Without wielding any of the thousand of lethal objects that embellish our museums, Gullermo Fariñas finished extinguishing the scent of jail from a hundred or so brothers. And he gave hope to thousands of others. This July 26th, while the country wore a mask of red and black slogans to conceal the national apathy, and … Continue reading “The Final Earthquake / Henry Constantín”
[Translator’s note: This post apparently got posted in the original missing the beginning… whether it starts in the middle of a sentence, a paragraph, we don’t know, as we haven’t been able to get in touch with Henry. If he adds the rest, we’ll add it here… but given internet access in Cuba… or lack … Continue reading “Hatuey* in Flames… / Henry Constantín”
I took a look around that place, because they had already told me about its crowd. And I saw them. One of them could not have been more than fifteen years old. The others, who were not more than 25, gave off subtle signals, between smiles, of having lived much more. Except for the youngest … Continue reading “Of Flesh and Laws / Henry Constantín”
Henry Constantín Ferreiro. (Camagüey, 1984) (Camagüey, 1984) Journalist, writer and photographer. Expelled from Journalism studies on two occasions, both for political problems: in 2006 from la Universidad de Oriente, and in 2008 from la Universidad Central “Marta Abreu” de Las Villas. Represented Cuba in the II Spanish American Spelling Contest in Bogotá, 2001, and is … Continue reading “Henry Constantín”
