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Original article: Fuimos al país «patrocinador del terrorismo»

By Dani Neira

The effects of the blockade were felt even before we set foot in Cuba.

As part of the Solidarity Brigades—activist groups that have been traveling to the island since 1960 to support the Cuban people—and with the backing of the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation, we began our journey to Cuba on February 11 during the intensification of the U.S. blockade that started on January 29, 2026.

Trump’s goal was to ensure that not even a drop of fuel would enter, which led to the cancellation of our flights. We also faced a halt from our German airline, necessitating a reorganization of our plans.

In short: after three days of travel, we arrived in Cuba from Mexico, where the government facilitated our entry, allowing us to bring medical and educational supplies for our brigade more smoothly.

Upon arrival, we quickly encountered the reality: streets with few cars, long lines to obtain fuel or board the limited public transport available, an increase in blackouts, universities operating partly online, and even less tourism than before.

The suffocating impact of the U.S. blockade was clearly visible. The lack of fuel, as in any country, severely affected the functioning of society; there is no doubt about that.

However, it was not the apocalyptic and catastrophic scenario that Western media often try to portray by repeating the same images of garbage accumulating in Old Havana. People are still living their lives; things continue to «function» as best as possible in that eternal adaptation of Cubans to adverse situations.

The accumulation of garbage is undoubtedly a problem for Cubans and is also a major media fixation for Western press; once again, they present with choreographed coverage using images of the same corners with trash and the same phrases in their reports.

In those reports, they mention «fuel shortages» without context, as if fuel had simply vanished into thin air, explaining that the garbage accumulates because: the collectors do not come. It’s brilliant journalism.

The blockade is presented as a secondary issue; indeed, various articles report that the government would «attribute» the problem of the collectors’ inability to operate due to the lack of fuel to the blockade. «Would attribute,» as if the blockade and Trump’s own statements regarding the energy squeeze were merely rumors or official whims.

Words matter, and the media of «discommunication,» as Eduardo Galeano would say, understand this very well. It’s not surprising that hegemonic media suddenly begin to worry about the garbage accumulated in Cuba. In many favelas in Brazil (a country that does not face a blockade), where garbage accumulation is also a serious issue, they’re still waiting for that Western empathy.

A Threat to U.S. Security

In the country classified as a «state sponsor of terrorism» by the nation that presents itself to the world as a sponsor of democracy, we meet people who fought in Angola and Namibia for the independence of both countries and against South African apartheid forces; we learned about Cuban doctors, known for their missions combating Ebola, COVID-19 in Italy, and programs like «Operation Miracle,» which restored sight to 4 million people, providing aid free of charge to patients.

In this «state sponsor of terrorism,» we also visited the Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB), where biologist Manuel Raíces Pérez Castañeda spoke to us about the importance of considering people’s health as a sacred right, always above market logics.

«Those who are suffocating you are the same ones who later tell you that your healthcare system is not functioning,» Pérez Castañeda told us, who has spent his life working under extremely adverse conditions due to a blockade that prevents them from importing raw materials for medicines. A blockade that threatens anyone who uses their Cuban products, or even shows its effects in simple matters like the difficulty of accessing scientific papers, among other things.

An example illustrating the difficulties Cuba has faced for 64 years is the case of COVID-19 vaccines; the country developed five, but struggled to vaccinate its population because the blockade made it difficult to procure needles.

I could share numerous examples of what we witnessed in this country shaped by internationalist values—a nation that never hesitates to offer help to various corners of the globe without expecting anything in return. Even the United States, after hurricanes like Katrina in 2005, Cuba offered 1,610 doctors, an offer that was declined by the U.S.

Sovereignty Is Not Up for Debate

We are talking about a poor, small Latin American country marked by centuries of colonialism and that was practically turned into a casino and brothel for U.S. mafias, ruled by tyrants subservient to U.S. neocolonialism, like Fulgencio Batista.

What many people seem to fail to understand (or don’t want to understand) is that Cuba’s sovereignty exists within this context. Sovereignty is non-negotiable, regardless of differing opinions regarding the government. That same understanding was evident among the majority of Cubans we interacted with in Havana.

Beyond that, we encountered all sorts of responses: people who criticized the current government and Díaz-Canel; others expressed empathy for the government’s misfortune after so many powerful hurricanes and cyclones, the pandemic, and the intensification of the blockade; and those who still ardently support it.

Likewise, we witnessed a widespread attachment to Fidel’s figure, even among those who detest the government and its leader Díaz-Canel. The reactions when asking about the revolutionary leader were striking, often joyful, as if recalling a beloved relative. This also showed us the clear divides between what the Revolution represents and what the government means.

«See? Socialism Doesn’t Work»

Cuba is a country at war. There is no normalcy in Cuba because normalcy cannot exist: the functioning and prosperity of the island pose a risk to the United States. Thus, since the triumph of the Revolution, the world’s greatest military and economic power has done everything possible to prevent the normal development of an alternative project.

From the Revolution to today, Cuba has suffered hundreds of terrorist attacks, hotel bombings, airplane hijackings, and burning of crops, among other aggressions. Moreover, on February 25, while we were on the island, a boat from the U.S. with ten armed individuals entered Cuban waters firing, resulting in four deaths from the aggressor’s boat and six captures, along with seized military weaponry.

Making a diagnosis of the functioning of socialism in Cuba under these conditions is impossible from the perspective of constant imperialist aggression and siege. No country in the world could develop normally under such strangulation, especially not a small, impoverished country in the Caribbean.

Nevertheless, I continue to reflect on the words of economist Gladys Hernández, who gave a talk on economics to our brigade. When asked about how Cuban socialism functions in such adverse circumstances, she replied: «The fact that we have resisted the attacks and blockade of the planet’s most powerful nation for such a long time shows that it has worked.»

The blockade is not mere rhetoric; it directly impacts people’s daily lives in cruel and humiliating ways: a woman without menstrual towels, a hospital lacking medical supplies, and a young person studying in the dark with a flashlight. It’s being in a group with people aged 60 and 18, and someone saying: «All of us here do not know life without the blockade.»

For 33 times, the UN General Assembly has voted against the blockade, with overwhelming majorities, with the exception of the United States, of course.

The U.S. wants us to see Cuba as fragile, unstable, poor, deteriorated, and dirty. In fact, I think that rather than wish to intervene, they prefer to keep it that way. So that our association with socialism is that: streets full of garbage, crumbling buildings, and shortages. They don’t want us to see that vibrant Cuba, that Olympic power, that Cuba with universal rights, that internationalist Cuba that exports doctors, develops cancer vaccines, promotes literacy, and has one of the highest life expectancies in the world.

Even less so do they want us to view socialism as a possibility for prosperity: that’s why they either hide China or label it as capitalist.

We simply wish that Cuba stops being an example of resistance socialism and instead becomes an example of prosperous socialism. That’s why today and always: end the blockade.

Dani Neira
Cover Photo: Estefania Henriquez Cubillos.-

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