English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
Carlos Serpa Maceira, 43, a freelance journalist born in the former Isla de Pinos, now Isla de la Juventud, is one of the leading communicators of the activities of The Ladies in White. More than a few times the taking of photographs or the writing of notes has ended up with his being dragged along … Continue reading “Barricade Journalism”
To engage in the profession of journalism in Cuba, outside the control of the state, has its dangers. Not to the extreme of having a hitman show up at your door on a motorcycle and fire a full magazine at you point blank from a .45 caliber pistol, as happens in Mexico or Colombia. They also don’t … Continue reading “Being a Journalist in Cuba”
The old computer in Lucerne The idea of having a blog where I could post about life in my country and to have the power to write in the first person about the small things in this scene that surround me, that was an idea that was cooked a long time over a slow flame. … Continue reading “From Havana, Year 1”
14ymedio, Miguel García, Holguín, October 18, 2023 — A motorcycle zips by as a horse-drawn carriage makes its way on the other side of road. The sunlight glistens off the asphalt which is, quite surprinsingly, flawless, without a pothole or a crack. The owner of the nearby privately owned company, Super Rapido CG, invested in … Continue reading “Cuban Business Owner Does in Months What the State Didn’t Do for Years”
14ymedio, Nelson García, Havana, October 19, 2023 — Cuba’s ruins have one thing in common: slogans with large letters painted on pieces of walls. In the case of the old Lebredo maternity hospital, located in the Havana municipality of Arroyo Naranjo, the message – a dig at former U.S. President George Bush – ends with … Continue reading “It Wasn’t a Missile That Demolished the Lebredo, ‘The Best Maternity Hospital in Cuba’”
14ymedio, Havana, 13 July 2023 — Some residents of the municipality of Playa in Havana have spent five consecutive days without water, this newspaper has learned. The suspension of the service adds to the long list of breakdowns suffered by the entire capital, and the government assures that work is being done to offer solutions. … Continue reading “Have Patience, the Part To Fix the Water Pump ‘Is Coming by Boat’ and Will Arrive in Cuba in a Month”
14ymedio, Yankiel Gutiérrez Faife, Camajuaní, 28 October 2022 — The cart towed by an old Soviet tractor left the rural area of Camajuaní in Villa Clara province headed to Remedios. It was loaded with seven pigs whose owners, five farmers who rented the transportation, had made the decision to sell to the state. With the … Continue reading “‘Four Years Have Passed and the Cuban Government Still Hasn’t Paid Us for the Hogs it Bought’”
14ymedio, Havana 10 September 2021 — Retired Colonel Eduardo Morejón Estévez is the 10th Cuban military man to die since mid-July. With the notable difference that the official press has not announced his death, unlike what occurred with the previous officers. The news was reported in a tweet published on September 7 by Elio Perera, … Continue reading “Cuba’s Official Press Silences the Death of Colonel Accused of Torturing US Prisoners in Vietnam”
The former anti-Castro guerrilla Zoila Águila Almeida, died in exile, a victim of Covid-19, at age 82 In 2018, the author wrote the following article with the hope of receiving news about Zoila Águila Almeida, La Niña de Placetas. 14ymedio, Idolidia Darias, Miami. (Originally written in 2018 and reprinted here in February 2021) — I’m … Continue reading “La Niña de Placetas, An Escambray Legend, Dies in Miami”
14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, December 16, 2020 — “When a lady broke two of the eggs I had bought, I almost lost it. I found it difficult to contain myself,” says Luis, a Havana resident who was lucky enough this morning to find thirty eggs for sale in an informal market. But it was … Continue reading “Broken Eggs”
14ymedio, Cynthia de la Cantera, Havana, June 23, 2020 — Ernesto is considered an “old dog” in his profession as a primary doctor. However, he still remembers how he and his colleagues were “tattooed with fire” after the authorities warned them during a training session about Covid-19 protocols. “Be careful about publishing a photo or information … Continue reading “The Risks and Insecurity of Being a Doctor in Cuba”
14ymedio, Havana, 7 February 2019 — Yaimaris Vecino, wife of Eduardo Cardet, visited the national coordinator of the Christian Liberation Movement and prisoner of conscience for the first time at the minimum security prison to which he was transferred last Friday by the authorities. The visit went “fairly well”, according to Vecino as she explained … Continue reading “Eduardo Cardet Receives his First Visit at the Minimum Security Facility Where He Was Transferred”
14ymedio, Zunilda Mata, Havana, 21 March 2017 — Cubans know a lot about adulterations. For decades they have grappled with the “diversion of resources” [i.e. stealing] from state stores and the practice of state employees acquiring products elsewhere at low prices, bringing them into the stores and selling them at high prices and keeping the profit … Continue reading “Doubtful Meat From Brazil Continues To Be Sold In Cuba / 14ymedio, Zunilda Mata”
14ymedio, Bertrand de la Grange, 1 December 2016 – In the Santa Clara mausoleum everything is genuine. Except, perhaps, Che’s bones. Thousands of people are making pilgrimages lately to this giant stone building to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Ernesto Guevara’s death. Official history says that a team of Cuban forensic scientists found his skeleton … Continue reading “Where Are Che’s Bones ? / 14ymedio, Bertrand de la Grange”
14ymedio, Havana, 6 November 2016 – On Sunday morning, the police arrested for the third time this week the researcher and marine biologist Ariel Urquiola, who has been holding a peaceful protest in front the National Oncology and Radiology Institute (INOR) since Thursday. He is demanding medical treatment for his sister, Omara Isabel Ruiz Urquiola, … Continue reading “Biologist Ruiz Urquiola Arrested for Demanding Medicine for His Sister / 14ymedio”
