Diaries Archives - Page 562 of 646

Esteban Morales (or the Agony of the Flying Fish)

I want to emphasize the fact concerning something that, to my understanding, has as much an impact as corruption: excessive power concentrated in the hands of our leaders.

Freedom to Choose (III & final)

What worries me most in the case of Cuba is that the recently announced government proposal speaks in favor of small private companies and not those of collectives of workers forming cooperatives.

A Tale of Two Cities

Luxurious apartments built on W. 25th Avenue in Havana for high-ranking officers of the Cuban Army and the Ministry of the Interior (State Security) contrast sharply with housing units constructed barely a few miles away in the capital’s community of San Agustin.

Is Speaking Out in Cuba a Crime?

It seems that I’m losing ground. Every day I lack a little more comprehension of the situation that surrounds me, and this worries me. Television and other media sources remind us that our leaders call for the people to express themselves, to discuss our nation’s problems and seek solutions. However, concrete practice contradicts those words.

Sex and ‘Letting Yourself Go’

These days, to descargar (to “let go”) is an attitude that is “modern,” voluntary and without mediating promises. After youths have fulfilled their “duty” of studying or their self-imposed “requirement” to “luchar el quilo” (hustle for a buck), nowadays they attempt to drown their boredom in music and alcohol, and easy sex.

From Big to Little Havana

My ten weeks in Cuba finally came to an end and I flew out of Havana two days ago. Since I had a stopover in Miami, I decided to stay for several days before heading home to New York. I traveled to Little Havana yesterday and spent the day exploring the neighborhood and talking to the people.

The Promised Building Materials Aren’t There

The government’s idea to sell building materials without a structural or a productive basis—isn’t working very well. In fact, I’ve always wondered: if they didn’t have materials yesterday, where do they hope to get them from today?

Graffiti in Santiago

While I was walking along with a friend who was visiting Santiago visited for the first time, our curiosity was whetted by the pervasiveness of the graffiti.

The Swindler

Listening to my mother, I was getting worried and upset. I told her, “How many times do I have to tell you not to open the gate for anybody if you don’t know them!

Trotsky, as Taught in Cuba

August 20th will mark 70 years since the fateful attack carried out by a Stalinist clique against a man who exhibited in his deeds and writings a love for the world proletariat. He was confident that a social structure different from capitalism could free life of all wrongs.