A Poet Without a Home in a Socialist Land
HAVANA TIMES – A stressed-out friend visits me. He tells me that a family has invaded his house. Even the local government representative, the delegate, has come to resolve the issue, but they have outright refused to leave. This is how my friend, the poet Ghabriel Perez, explains what he did next. He went to the 1st Police Station, where they told him that it wasn’t the right place to seek help, and that he should go to the 2nd Police Station. So, he went where they told him to go. But there, they said no, it wasn’t their responsibility either —it was at the 1st station, where he had already gone.
He continues telling me: “They started giving me the runaround” (we say that in Cuba when they send you from one place to another without solving the problem), and after much pleading, they tell me it’s not their issue. The National Revolutionary Police can intervene when state property is occupied, but not private property. They said it had to be dealt with by the Prosecutor’s Office.
So, he went there next. The Prosecutor’s Office told him he had to file a complaint. An investigation would be carried out, which could take 30 to 60 days. Only then would they proceed according to the law. He filed the complaint immediately. Both my friend and I suspect that this bitter incident may have been induced by the State itself. Many of our mutual friends think the same.
Even though Ghabriel Perez is a recognized poet —he won the City Prize, has published books in narrative as well, and has received recognition in the cultural sphere for his active participation— he is known for his critical view of reality and a rebellious attitude. He was the initiator and promoter of the “Celestino” literary contest, a facilitator in literature workshops across the province, and an editor for many years both in Ministry of Culture publishing houses and in Caritas ecclesiastical projects. Despite his admirable career, totalitarian governments like ours do not forgive ways of thinking that diverge from their own. No virtue, effort, or contribution can matter more than the fact of thinking differently.
I can’t help but recall what independent journalist and biologist Osmel Ramírez Alvarez once shared with me at his home in Mayarí. One day, he said, several patrol cars surrounded my house, with police everywhere for no reason; all that was missing were helicopters, like in a Hollywood movie on a Sunday night. This happened after he started writing for “Diario de Cuba.” They arrested him and confiscated his computer and hard drives. Finally, after the usual interrogations, they allowed him to return home to his family. “And the devices?” I asked him. “They were never returned to me,” he replied, “I had to build another computer later.”
If you put up a sign, if you shout “Down with Raul Castro,” if you write “Down with the Castro dictatorship,” then the National Revolutionary Police, the Technical Investigation Department, and the Ministry of the Interior will arrive in no time. But if you’re robbed, if your house is invaded, or if you have some other problem, then it’s a different story. It’s a complicated process. Bureaucracy often tells you: “It’s your problem, solve it however you can.” Like when you’re robbed, after so many questions, they somehow tell you that it’s your fault for being careless with your security.
So, seeing my friend without his home, sleeping wherever he could, as he told me —on weeds, on park benches, wherever night fell on him— and thinking that he didn’t deserve this (nor does anyone), I decided to post about it on my Facebook wall. I asked people to offer closed houses owned by those on internationalist missions, because frankly, we needed a home for this family so our friend could recover his.
I am immensely happy to say that the day after I posted, the problem was resolved. A mutual friend told me that Ghabriel was back in his house without further trouble. I was overjoyed. Our mutual friend pointed out that the problem was solved because of my Facebook post. So, I feel like a hero! And although it’s not good to inflate one’s ego, I must admit how great it feels when you do something right, something good. When you’re on the right side of a situation.