Lynn Cruz’s Diary

“They’re Using You”

I recently read Tania Bruguera’s statements about an artist’s rights. One of them referred to the artist’s right to dissent. Within an authoritarian system, the artist begins to live a double dissidence, first in art, then in society.

Illegality Proves that things Need to Change

Not too long ago, I was speaking to a historian who told me she was up-to-date with the news relating to acts of censorship that have taken place over recent months. With a gesture of political indifference she said: “This isn’t going to change.”

Making Political Theater in Cuba

After my furious state in front of the police and State security forces, when they tried to prevent my play “Enemies of the People” from making its debut (I say “tried” because, in spite of the pain it caused to have to bid farewell to all my guests, the play was performed for the only two people who had managed to enter), everyone is advising me to calm down…

Cuba Enters a New Phase of Artist Persecution

While watching the images of the latest wave of repression to befall independent Cuban artists , one word kept popping into my head: Shame. Arbitrary arrests, stopping people from walking down certain streets or entering certain homes reveal a lack of respect that not only exists with artists, but with citizens on the whole.

What’s Happening to Cuba’s Film Industry

Cuban institutions have become derelict buildings, where fear rules, while a select few pocket everything. The Cuban people’s reality is something like an emaciated buffet where everything is controlled, where plates come in and leave, but they can’t have access to the restaurant’s real menu.