English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
“Look! Look how the people support us! You say that the people condemn us…look how the people support us.” This is what Zuleidys Perez Velasquez repeated on Monday, August 5th to the members of the State (In)Security when the bus that carried 14 detained opponents passed through the center of Holguin. The opposition leaned their … Continue reading “Look! Look how the people support us! / CID”
I scan the shelves, dusting off my memory for books over these last decades, in search of the titles that I must keep, at all costs, from the fire of oblivion. It’s not an easy task. Every author, every text chosen… is an act of betrayal toward the rest. Making a list of the essential … Continue reading “Choosing a Book, or the Reader’s Betrayal / Yoani Sanchez”
By Karen Garcia Zero symbolizes nothing. It presents itself as the cornerstone of mathematics, mute protagonist of our arithmetical system. The idea of zero developed in India starting in the 5th century B.C. There various religions accepted the creation of the world starting from nothing. The Hindus demonstrated that when you add it to any … Continue reading “The Teaching of Zero in the Pre-school Years / Dora Leonor Mesa”
“Fly without fear” series, by Luis Felipe Rojas It was the Argentine author Jorge Luis Borges who said “To organize libraries is to silently practice the art of critique.” In the past few months I have also dedicated myself to organizing ’my library,’ but backwards, the library of books which I maybe had one day, … Continue reading “The Hungers That Kill Me / Luis Felipe Rojas”
(Exclusive, Iván García in Havana) If you want confirmation that socialism does not work, do yourself a favor and visit Alamar. This community, twenty minutes east of Havana, is an example of real urban chaos. A place without rhyme or reason, ugly, poorly constructed buildings rise four, five, even eighteen stories high along poorly paved, winding roads. … Continue reading “An Interview with Berta Soler, Leader of the Ladies in White / Ivan Garcia”
Miguel Luna drawn by Abel Prieto, in Viajes de Miguel Luna. “The day that rabble gets into the UNEAC*, we’re lost.” – Abel Prieto, from his Viajes de Miguel Luna What does a Minister of Culture think about when he turns into an author? What does he aesthetically cling to and what does he judge … Continue reading “Abel Prieto’s Travels / Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo”
Havana, Cuba, July 2, 2013 Lilianne Ruiz/www.cubanet.org — Ruben Benitez is not his real name. His real name is not used because he is a father and family man and afraid of losing his job. Doctor by profession he remains disconcerted by the death of his father which occurred in the Calixto Garcia hospital. According … Continue reading “Cuban Hospitals Are Falling to Pieces and If They Repair Them, It’s With the Patients Inside / Lilianne Ruiz”
Editor’s note This is going to be a long but necessary post. From the La Lima prison, where he currently finds himself serving a five-year imprisonment which the government imposed in a rigged trial in order to condemn him for a common crime that he did not commit, we have received these responses by the … Continue reading “Angel Santiesteban: To Proven Innocence, Manifest Disloyalty”
After three months moving from coast to coast of the United States like an off-balance electron, finally I receive a little from dirty faces, the smell of croquette and military comemierduría (“crap eating”). I deserved it: I already missed my homeland so much… Welcome to LASA 2013, Cubans. Indeed, also after three months meeting there … Continue reading “Fear and Loathing in LASA / Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo”
Playa Siboney, the telephone company’s work for the fiber optic cable. The residents of Siboney have reasons to be sad and upset, very upset. Hurricane Sandy devastated a good part of their coastal infrastructure, destroying houses, throwing up huge rocks on the shore, and seriously damaging the area’s vegetation. More than eight months after this … Continue reading “Playa Siboney: Where the Fiber Optic Cable Touches Land / Yoani Sanchez”
Placing zeros to the right seems to be the preferred sport of those who put a price on the homes they sell in Cuba today. A captive market at the end of the day, the buyer could find a lot of surprises in the wide range of classified ads. From owners who ask astronomical sums for … Continue reading “Three Parameters, One House / Yoani Sanchez”
Tomorrow, May 1, the United Nations Human Rights Council will meet in Geneva, where Cuba will present a report with notes on its prison policy. “Dressing up” for the occasion, for the first time in nine years the Castro regime opened its jails to the national and international press accredited in Cuba. It is public … Continue reading “The United Nations Human Rights Council and its Great Challenge With Cuba / Angel Santiesteban”
Operation Truth Video & Transcript Site manager: We decided not to subtitle the video itself, given its length and poor sound quality, so a transcript is provided below and can be downloaded here. The video of Eliecer’s encounter with Ricardo Alarcon is available subtitled in English here. Yoani Sánchez: It’s a pleasure to be with you … Continue reading “Operation Truth – Video / Eliecer Avila and Yoani Sanchez”
Nicolas Maduro. Image from http://www.espanol.rfi.fr I already said in two tweets Sunday: “Even after death #Chavez won elections in #Venezuela. Maybe now, his imitator will let him rest in peace.” And I added the following: “The socialist bus driver takes the helm of #Venezuela. Let’s see how he drives from now on, Chavism without #Chavez.” … Continue reading “Microphone Obscenities / Rosa Maria Rodriguez”
From El Blog de Montaner Yoani Sánchez visits Miami. It is the most difficult stop in her long tour. Everywhere, like a bullfighter hailed after a good afternoon, she has been carried on the shoulders of the crowd. She will also triumph in Miami, but her task will be a bit harder. I get the … Continue reading “Yoani Sanchez: An effective voice against the Castro dictatorship / Carlos Alberto Montaner”
