English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
Roberto Lopez arrived early at the Arrroyo Naranjo Property Registry. His plan was to divide his house. One part of the house was to be donated to his only granddaughter and the other was to be sold. He is 70 years old and he needs resources to live. He was number 10 in line that … Continue reading “Work in Progress / Laritza Diversent”
He’s brought Raul Castro an excellent opportunity to demonstrate the possible honesty of his words. In the handful of years during which he’s been the regent of this feudal family that is the whole Island, the younger of the Castros has never stopped repeating a maxim in his sharp voice and as if it were … Continue reading “The Rebellion of the Righteous / Ernesto Morales Licea”
This past November 2nd, the Cuban government published the Legal Decree Number 288 that modified the “General Law of the Home”, and permitted the buying and selling of real estate between private parties, until then it was prohibited by national legislation. The new law took effect the 10th of November and generally permits owners: Cubans … Continue reading “Cubans Can Sell Their Homes / Laritza Diversent”
Architecture that was once daring, a carefully tended lawn, and well-guarded doors to ward off the curious. The Palace of Conventions has been the site of so very many events organized by the government that it is difficult to separate its name from the word “official.” It has also served as the parliamentary hall for … Continue reading “Dictated Hashtags / Yoani Sánchez”
According to Jonathan Swift, when a true genius appears in the world we can recognize him by a sign: All fools conspire against him. I believe we could easily adapt this maxim – taken from the stupendous novel “A Confederacy of Dunces” by John Kennedy Toole – to another context: When a sensible president appears … Continue reading “Obama, Cuba, and the Confederacy of Dunces / Ernesto Morales Licea”
Because of the 492nd Anniversary of the Villa of Saint Christopher of Havana, between the many television programs dedicated to this celebration, Hurón Azul, of the UNEAC (Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba), presented some interviews with renowned architects and artists, where they poured out their opinions about the the deteriorating image of the … Continue reading “A Beautiful Lady Comes to Less / Rebeca Monzo”
Translator’s note: This series of posts are comments from Regina to authors or commentors on the blog La Joven Cuba. For Osmani, for your post on the “Five.” The “Wasp Network” is, I believe, the only Cuban intelligence network discovered by the American government over more than fifty years of dispute. You must have noticed, … Continue reading “Bad Handwriting in La Joven Cuba (16) / Regina Coyula”
The FP Top 100 Global Thinkers Foreign Policy presents a unique portrait of 2011’s global marketplace of ideas and the thinkers who make them. DECEMBER 2011 When Yoani Sánchez launched her blog, Generation Y, in 2007, the Havana-born computer programmer turned journalist was a virtual unknown. Four years later, she’s a dissident voice of such … Continue reading “Yoani Sanchez Included in Foreign Policy Top 100 Global Thinkers / Translating Cuba”
Text of Article: Dario Delgado Cura Attorney General of the Republic Reflecting on the phenomenon of corruption in Cuba is not just an academic exercise, but also an important and unavoidable responsibility, given the proved consequences on the moral, economic and social order it generates, and considering that it is a phenomenon produced in any … Continue reading “Broken Windows / Regina Coyula”
This week I had a brief involvement in a radio program, but, unfortunately, there was insufficient time for the issue which I was invited discuss. Of course, this is not the Cuban radio on the Island, nor do I want to make a critical assessment of the program in question in this post. I hold … Continue reading “Surveys, to Please Expectations? / Miriam Celaya”
Leonardo Padura just won the “Roger Caillois” Prize. We universal lovers of literature received the news with a mixture of satisfaction (almost personal) and unjustified astonishment: for a long time Leonardo Padura has exceeded the boundaries of what some call Cuban literature, and has become an indispensable narrator of today’s literary landscape. If prizes demonstrate … Continue reading ““My Characters Could Form a Collage of Disillusionment” / Ernesto Morales Licea”
Spoken Word in Havana, originally uploaded by orlandoluispardolazo The Writing Workshop of the International Poetry Festival in Havana along with Roads of Words (a group dedicated to the promotion of spoken word poetry in Cuba), invite you to a conference: Spoken Word: A New Wave of Contemporary Poetry (featuring the poet and cultural promotor: Elier … Continue reading “Spoken Word in Havana / Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo”
The housing regulations, recently enacted by the government of Cuba, and which take effect on November 10, leave intact regulations that impede the full exercise of the right of ownership. As part of the implementation of the Guidelines adopted at the Sixth Congress of the Communist Party of Cuba in April, the State Council issued … Continue reading “Housing Regulations Maintain Restrictions for Cubans / Laritza Diversent”
Between the ugly concrete buildings and the mansions with gardens, timid spaces for entertainment are emerging. A neighborhood that for decades was condemned to nocturnal boredom, a slice of the bedroom city, now sees glowing signs and bars offering drinks springing up here and there. Comfortable cafes, bars, gyms, and hairdressers flourish with the rebirth … Continue reading “Will They Survive? / Yoani Sánchez”
Photo: Rebeca Here in my country, the movement of the outraged is front page news. In the three national official newspapers and on television photos, images and praised are repeated, to no one’s surprise, accustomed as we are to the government’s taking advantage of anyone who criticizes the empire and its lackeys. More than politics, … Continue reading “A Litte Bit Outraged / Fernando Dámaso”
