English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 21 April2021 — The artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara has been besieged for more than two weeks in his home in Old Havana, headquarters of the San Isidro Movement (MSI). “I have been here for 17 days without being able to leave my house. I try to leave and the political police detain … Continue reading “Otero Alcantara Demands $500,000 from Cuban Government for Damage to His Works”
Miriam Celaya, Havana Cuba, 31 March 2021 ─ The case of young Karla Pérez González, who had to complete her studies as a journalist in Costa Rica after being expelled from a Cuban university for political reasons is the most recent example of selective exile applied by the Cuban dictatorial regime against one of our … Continue reading “State Violence and the Sin of Complicity”
14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 15 March 2021 — “You can’t go out today.” It is the ninth day in a short span this year that I get the same blunt message from a State Security agent who prevents me from crossing the threshold of the building. Decried by various international organizations, besieging independent journalists and activists … Continue reading “The Failure of an Operation: I Continue to Do Journalism in Cuba”
14ymedio, Havana, 15 March 2021 — Since last November 27, when some thirty artists managed to force a meeting with the Vice Minister of Culture, Fernando Rojas, after the unprecedented demonstration of some 300 people before the ministry, the question has divided activists: should the Cuban opposition recognize the Government as an interlocutor in a dialogue that guides … Continue reading “Should the Opposition Dialogue with the Cuban Government?”
14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 12 March 2021 — The San Isidro Movement (MSI) explained during a press conference details about the National Dialogue initiative proposed by the Patria y Vida [Homeland and Life] platform, inspired by the song by Yotuel Romero, Gente de Zona, Descemer Bueno, Osorbo and El Funky. Iris Ruiz, Michel Matos, Amaury Pacheco and Luis … Continue reading ““The National Dialogue Will Allow Us to Move from Complaint to Strategic Action””
14ymedio, Havana, 17 February 2021 — The video was released on social networks on Tuesday night and just twelve hours later it already exceeded 200,000 views on YouTube. No one expected anything less: for the first time Gente de Zona, Yotuel Romero and Descemer Bueno, residents outside of Cuba, work in a collaboration with the musicians Maykel Castillo Osorbo and El … Continue reading “‘Patria y Vida’, a Soundtrack for Change in Cuba”
14ymedio, Havana, 5 February 2021 — The rebellious rapper Denis Solís, who is serving eight months in the Combinado del Este, the largest prison in Cuba, for an alleged crime of contempt, was transferred this Friday to the work camp inside the prison itself. The authorities lifted the ban on making phone calls and he … Continue reading “Denis Solis Sent to a Work Camp in the Largest Prison in Cuba”
14ymedio, Havana, 2 February 2021 — The Cuban Youth Dialogue Table returned to the public scene on Monday with the launch of the #Exprésate! [Express Yourself] campaign, which promotes Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the right to freedom of expression and information. To do this, it released a video featuring the … Continue reading “#Exprésate! (Express yourself!): A New Campaign for Freedom in Cuba”
14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 30 January 2021 — Celia González (Havana, 1985) has arrived from Mexico to link Nicaragua and Cuba in an exhibition that reflects the political similarities of both nations. She is an artist who likes provocation, research and data who graduated from the Higher Institute of Art in 2009, but long before … Continue reading ““In Cuba, Our Parents’ Generation is Collapsing””
14ymedio, Havana, 24 December 2020 — It took several days to identify him and only his first name is known. When he appeared before the public for the first time, in a video broadcast on social networks on November 22, it was an individual in a red T-shirt with a homemade white cloth mask who was haranguing some twenty … Continue reading “14ymedio’s Faces of 2020: Reinerio, Repressor”
Cubanet, Miriam Celaya, Havana, 4 December 2020 — There is no doubt that Cubans are experiencing unusually intense days. The last days of November, and especially the repressive onslaught against the barracks of the San Isidro Movement (MSI) that caused the November 27th sit-in before the Ministry of Culture (MINCULT), marked an important milestone in … Continue reading “Cuban Fable about “The Four Cats*””
14ymedio, Havana, 3 December 2020 — The following document is the result of comparing the notes taken by various people who were present and what was remembered by the participants. Published on the Facebook Page 27N (for ‘November 27’) , it is reproduced with their permission. They point out that “there were more statements in … Continue reading ““You Should Be the Ones Talking to Us, Not State Security””
14ymedio, Havana, December 4, 2020 — The Cuban Observatory for Human Rights (OCDH) claims that Raúl Castro and Miguel Díaz-Canel are “setting the stage for civil war in order to hold onto power at any cost instead of adopting the reforms that Cuba urgently needs.” In a statement issued on Thursday, the Madrid-based organization condemned … Continue reading “Human Rights Group Warns Cuban Government Is Setting the Stage for Civil War to Hold onto Power”
14ymedio, Havana, December 4, 2020 — A young man who was peacefully protesting on San Rafael Street in central Havana on Friday afternoon garnered solidarity from numerous passers-by on the popular pedestrian thoroughfare. When the police arrested the protester, there were shouts of “leave him alone” and “thugs.” He was carrying a handmade cardboard sign … Continue reading “A Young Man Protests Repression and Receives Popular Support on a Havana Boulevard”
14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 3 December 2020 — Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara was not the only one to be arrested this Wednesday. The harassment has continued in the last 24 hours against members of the San Isidro Movement and other independent artists. Tania Bruguera was also arrested on Wednesday afternoon when she was on her way to … Continue reading “Despite the Arrests and Pressures from Cuba’s Political Police, Independent Artists Gather”
