November 7th was the anniversary of the Russian proletarian revolution of 1917, while November 9th marked the 20th year since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Both were key events in the history of the 20th century, particularly those of socialist endeavors.
Some dissident bloggers also showed up. One of them was an older grayed-hair person who had apparently met me at the theological institute where we had both studied. He asked me, “Who’s organizing this? I see that people from ‘Socialism of the 21st Century’ are here. This must be an official march.”
Violence is a reality present in almost all social settings: the family, gender relationships, childhood and education, sports, wars, the State and international politics, ecology… It would be simpler but more difficult to specify situations where there is not violence. Regrettably, Cuba is not an exception to this logic.
Not long ago, I saw a guy on a bus wearing a cap with the Confederate flag on it. Plus, written across the front was the motto “Confederacy border patrol: Keeping Yankees north since…” (followed by an absurd date from American history). The man – a Cuban, white and mustached – was also wearing a US Marines t-shirt.
When self-employment was authorized in 1990s, the walkway in front of the Naval Hospital was soon filled with food stands of all the sizes and colors offering orange juice, pastry, pizza, sandwiches, coffee, sodas, fried bananas, boxed traditional Creole takeout, etc.
I’m attracted by the idea that the founders of our republics were also human beings, endowed with their respective gender roles. I take note of the changes that have occurred since their time; changes that I find fascinating.
“To struggle” is one of the essential expressions of Cuban political speech of the last 50 years. You struggle against imperialism, against immobilism, against wasting energy, against work delays and absenteeism, against marabu weeds, against the bureaucracy. And you struggle for the Revolution and for socialism.
Hershey is the last “model town” in Cuba. It has a twin town in Pennsylvania also founded and conceived by US businessman Milton S. Hershey. It’s as if they transported a piece of the United States to the Municipality of Santa Cruz del Norte in the Province of La Habana.
Every time I take the bus, I take a close look at the other passengers. If I am seated, I try to see if there is an elderly person, someone with disabilities or a pregnant woman close by to give them my seat. Sometimes I am tired and do it reluctantly.
I realize that all these changes are controversial (in addition to their not getting at the root of the problem), but I’m pleased that they’re taking place. I believe that the key is the diversification of the educational system in conformity with the interests, aptitudes and motivations of the students.