“In Cuba we have learned our duties very well, but not our rights” / 14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Tania Bruguera

14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Havana, 4 February 2015 – This coming February 22 Tania Bruguera should be in Madrid to present one of her works at the ARCO International Contemporary Art Fair, but she knows she isn’t going to make it. Trapped by Cuban justice since last December 30, when she was arrested during her performance … Continue reading ““In Cuba we have learned our duties very well, but not our rights” / 14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Tania Bruguera”

Tania Bruguera leaves UNEAC and returns her National Culture Award / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Havana, 5 January 2014 – This Monday, the Cuban artist Tania Bruguera returned the National Culture Award (Distinción por la Cultura Nacional) she received in 2002, and decided to renounce her membership in the National Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba (UNEAC). “I can not receive recognition from, nor be part of, an … Continue reading “Tania Bruguera leaves UNEAC and returns her National Culture Award / 14ymedio”

Tania Bruguera released / 14ymedio

14ymedio, 2 January 2014 — The #YoTambienExijo.(I Also Demand) platform announced this Friday afternoon the release of the artist Tania Bruguera from the Acosta y Diez de Octubre Police Station. According to the platform, “Bruguera is already in her family’s apartment in El Vedado, she is going to rest right now and be with her mother.” … Continue reading “Tania Bruguera released / 14ymedio”

Hundreds of Artists Address a Letter to Raul Castro To Seek the Release of Tania Bruguera / 14ymedio

14YMEDIO, 2 January 2014 – As of right now, almost 300 artists have signed an open letter to President Raul Castro to petition for the release of Tania Bruguera and the other activists arrested after the performance organized by the artist last Tuesday, December 30. The initiative comes from Cuauhtemoc Medina (curator and critic of … Continue reading “Hundreds of Artists Address a Letter to Raul Castro To Seek the Release of Tania Bruguera / 14ymedio”

Tania Bruguera Under Arrest at Acosta Police Station in Diez de Octubre, Havana / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Havana, 30 december 2014 — Contacted by phone at her home, the director of 14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, said that Tania Bruguera was under arrest at the Acosta Police Station in the Diez de Octubre municipality in Havana. Reinaldo Escobar was released from the same station Tuesday night at 10:00 pm. Escobar affirmed that he … Continue reading “Tania Bruguera Under Arrest at Acosta Police Station in Diez de Octubre, Havana / 14ymedio”

Querido Raul, Dear Obama, Querido Pope Francis / 14ymedio, Tania Bruguera

14ymedio, Tania Bruguera, Vatican City, 18 December 2014 – First of all I congratulate you because a historic moment is what is always expected of political men and this moment has been 17 December 2014. You have entered into history by arguing that the embargo/blockade is an apparently empty word, by changing – with the … Continue reading “Querido Raul, Dear Obama, Querido Pope Francis / 14ymedio, Tania Bruguera”

Tania is so very Tania / Yoani Sánchez

I remember well the day of the Havana Biennial when Tania Bruguera, in her performance titled Tatlin’s Whisper, installed a pair of microphones so that anyone could enjoy one minute of freedom from the podium. Shortly afterward, this irreverent and universal artist went to Columbia and shocked everyone when — as a performance — she … Continue reading “Tania is so very Tania / Yoani Sánchez”

Is a Fraudulent Change Brewing Up in Cuba? / Jeovany Jimenez Vega

Ciudadano Cero, Jeovany Jimenez Vega, 7 June 2021 [Readers, note date, this is a delayed translation] — In a memorable scene from Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Godfather”, the old Corleone hands over the family command to Michael, while warning him of the imminent danger of betrayal. The Don is a profound connoisseur of human nature, … Continue reading “Is a Fraudulent Change Brewing Up in Cuba? / Jeovany Jimenez Vega”

Cuba’s Minister of Culture’s Aggression Against Artists Sparks International Condemnation (Article from 2021)

14ymedio, Havana, 27 January 2021 [Readers please note, this article is from 2021 and only recently translated] — The day of arrests and protests of artists that took place this Wednesday in front of the Ministry of Culture has not taken long to receive condemnation from several international organizations, among which stands out the Cuban Observatory … Continue reading “Cuba’s Minister of Culture’s Aggression Against Artists Sparks International Condemnation (Article from 2021)”

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’”

Ortega Is Inspired by the Cuban Model To Prevent the Entry of ‘Undesirables’ Into Nicaragua

14ymedio/EFE, San José, 19 December 2023 — The NGO Collective of Human Rights Nicaragua Nunca Más [Never Again] warned on Monday about “a new method of repression” implemented by the government of Daniel Ortega against critics and opponents, which consists of prohibiting them from entering the country when they leave on a trip and seek … Continue reading “Ortega Is Inspired by the Cuban Model To Prevent the Entry of ‘Undesirables’ Into Nicaragua”

Cuba’s Candidacy for the UN Human Rights Council Is Being Challenged

EFE (via 14ymedio), Havana, 8 September 2023 — About 20 Cuban opposition organizations and 30 individual dissidents, mostly based abroad, signed a statement that rejects the recently announced candidacy for the re-election of Cuba to the UN Human Rights Council for the period 2024-2026. The document, published this Thursday, states that the Cuban State “does … Continue reading “Cuba’s Candidacy for the UN Human Rights Council Is Being Challenged”

Cristina Vives, Independent Art Curator in Cuba: ‘What We Do Is Seen With Suspicion’

EFE (via 14ymedio), Laura Becquer, Havana, 16 July 2023 — – Promoting art independently and privately in Cuba continues to be seen with “suspicion” and leaves those who are dedicated to that activity in a certain situation of “vulnerability,” says curator Cristina Vives, with 30 years of experience in the sector, speaking in an interview … Continue reading “Cristina Vives, Independent Art Curator in Cuba: ‘What We Do Is Seen With Suspicion’”

Cuba’s Silent Majority

14ymedio, Yunior García Aguilera, Madrid, 18 April 2023 — I have a friend who says he’s not leftist, nor rightist, but the opposite. After his apparently absurd joke, it’s evident he is fed up with the polarization that is shaking Cuba and the planet. The truth is that those on the right tend to move … Continue reading “Cuba’s Silent Majority”