English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
It’s sad to see the “deputies” applauding every stupidity that originates in the puppet theater, and how many respectable, and some admired figures — very few are left — are unaware that history will remember them as accomplices to the Totalitarian Government. Not to be forgotten is the consistent attitude maintained by the painter Pedro … Continue reading “The Mediocre “Cuban National Assembly” / Angel Santiesteban”
I read this phrase that I chose as a title on Facebook, and in the background were photos of Fidel and Raul Castro, the brothers who have tyrannically ruled Cuba for more than fifty years. It’s true, those Dictators rule because we Cubans on the island obey, because to confront them is to fear losing … Continue reading ““They Rule Because You Obey” / Angel Santiesteban”
Angel Santiesteban, 13 August 2012 — The painter, Alex Leyva (aka Kcho) has stated in a session of the Parliament of the Assembly of People’s Power, in which he serves as a “deputy,” that artists should work for the people voluntarily and for free without receiving any monetary compensation.” At a meeting of intellectuals and artists … Continue reading “Kcho: To Clamor for Slavery is Contrary to the Ethics of the Artist / Ángel Santiesteban”
The sad news has come to me that Ibrahim Doblado died. And after recalling our jokes, complicity and sympathy, I felt relief for him. Unfortunately for many years he was abandoned. For the government, of course, it will just be one less writer, which is the same thing as: one less enemy. He was one … Continue reading “Ibrahim Doblado: One Less Writer / Ángel Santiesteban”
When the funeral cortege left the chapel in Cerro with the body of the political leader Oswaldo Payá, having barely advanced a few yards, it was stopped for some twenty minutes. Something happened at the beginning of the caravan. Several people got out of the car to find out what; we feared the worse although … Continue reading “Detention of Antonio Rodiles: Guilty of the Free "Estado de Sats" / Ángel Santiesteban”
A few years ago I accompanied a friend from the Basque Country to the home of Oswaldo Payá. I left him nearby so as not to call attention to ourselves, because Payá’s house was always under heavy surveillance. The Basque wanted to do an interview with him and had already arranged the appointment. It was … Continue reading “A Visit to Oswaldo Payá / Ángel Santiesteban”
Oswaldo Payá has died and left us, this man who with his “Varela Project” taught my generation and Cuba that freedom is possible. We were very young then and our idea was to shout liberty through literary works, which, from our naivete, we thought was the most direct path to democracy, and that this was … Continue reading “Oswaldo Payá on the Altar of the Nation / Ángel Santiesteban”
by Ernesto Santana Zaldívar HAVANA, Cuba, June, www.cubanet.org – In the ’90s, the generation of the Novísimos (the Newest) brought to Cuban literature themes and narrative forms that marked a certain rupture with the previous generations. Angel Santiesteban, born in 1966, became one of the most emblematic creators of this time, not only for the … Continue reading “Now I feel more free in my conscience: Interview with the writer Ángel Santiesteban / Ángel Santiesteban”
There was a definitive moment for your career as a writer that I believe is worth remembering, even when I know that it can be a difficult question: your meeting with the writer Eduardo Heras Leon. Leaving aside the possible differences that you could have had from the clear ideological differences between Eduardo and us, … Continue reading “Interview of Cuban writer Ángel Santiesteban Prats by Amir Valle – Part 2 of 4”
“The responsibility of Cuban writers, more than ever, is to protest, to make their disagreements public.” For more than a decade, starting with invisible struggles that happened during literary events that were taking place in Cuban literature in the 90’s, the name of Angel Santiesteban was mentioned several times, but always strangely linked to the … Continue reading “Interview of Cuban writer Ángel Santiesteban Prats by Amir Valle – Part 1 of 4”
These days I have wandered with my lawyer through the “legal systems” of Cuba. The Castro brothers, who own the Birán estate that was previously their father’s, later extended the fence to the limit of the jurisdictional waters and converted the estate into Birania. They seized the rest of the nation and have “governed” it as if it were their personal fiefdom, … Continue reading “My Case File Disappeared / Angel Santiesteban”
Recently various events have stolen our time of creation. On the fifth anniversary of the blog Generation Y, a pioneer space that shouts to the world about the rights of Cubans, the gift from the government has been the imprisonment of the attorney Wilfredo Vallín Almeida, president of the Cuban Law Association (AJC). It was … Continue reading “Cuba, Crying Out Against the Fear / Angel Santiesteban”
Art has always been feared by dictators for its silent and devastating property of exposing the occult. Because it is the messenger pigeon that conveys the feeling of the people, their fears and hopes. It also has the power to move public opinions and to help displace the warlords. The response of totalitarian governments, as … Continue reading “Art that Challenges / Angel Santiesteban”
During the mass in Santiago de Cuba, a young man who is desperate, like the rest of Cubans, shouted “Freedom”. Immediately, and quickly, some members of State Security, disguised as members of The Red Cross, threw themselves at him to beat and arrest him. Thanks to technology it was filmed and came to light publicly. … Continue reading “The Cuban Man Who Shouted "Freedom" For All of Us Who Remain Silent / Angel Santiesteban”
I was struck by the Movement of the Outraged taking over the plazas of the world, like the Old West, without getting into whether or not there are reasons to do it, because I have no details about the situation that led them to take this action. (When such protests happen in Cuba, then I’ll … Continue reading “The Movement of the Outraged: a Fiction for Cubans on the Island / Angel Santiesteban”