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The Cuban Rap Agency Controversy (Sekou’s Version)  2/1/2012 Havana Times: by Yusimi Rodriguez - "HT: You weren’t bothered that Magia was a woman who was directing a lot of male rappers? Sekou: That’s not the case. We’ve always had female directors at the Rap Agency. If another woman director comes later, that’s fine. I think men have held more than enough management positions in the world for more than enough time. If a woman is leading and doing the job, at least in my personal case, that’s not a problem. But it’s a problem if someone is in that position to carry out certain responsibilities but they don’t fulfill them as they should. If tomorrow they make another woman the director, that’s fine. But as artists we want them to do their job for us. We want to have a director who facilitates things for us. I want someone who will help me if I want to do a concert that requires a lot of logistics. I want someone who will support me with the expenses. However, if you can’t help me but you can spend money on yourself, then what’s up with that? Those are things one might suspect and comment about, but when you go through the paperwork you realize that it’s an objective fact."

A Cuba Artist’s ‘Corporal Concepts’  1/5/2012 Havana Times: by Yusimi Rodriguez

The Unity of the Majority of Cubans  12/29/2011 Havana Times: by Yusimi Rodriguez - "The question is: Will this minority at some point have the legal right to organize its members, or unite with other minorities or with/in other parties? Another question: Will the Communist Party of Cuba at some point cease to be “The” party to simply become a political party; one of many that people can join as they wish?"

Cuba Hip Hop Has Its Magic  12/22/2011 Havana Times: by Yusimi Rodriguez - "Recently a large part of the rappers that belong to the Cuban Rap Agency sent a letter to Culture Minister Abel Prieto, in which they complained about the work of Magia López at the head of the agency and asked that she be removed. This is an interview with Magia for Havana Times made before the sending of the letter. She talks about the CD Disco Negro and other topics including her work at the Cuban Rap Agency."

Maite Vera: A Cuban Who Writes Soap Operas  12/18/2011 Havana Times: by Yusimi Rodriguez - "Many Cubans feel Maite’s scripts reflect a rose-colored vision of the regime, and perhaps the explanation lies in this documentary. We discover a woman who lived through the Batista dictatorship and belongs to the generation that built the Revolution, experiencing the excitement of that period. Likewise, within the years of the revolution she graduated from the University of Theatre and Drama – at the age of 50. Therefore her vision could hardly be other than that of an active defender of the cause."

Cuba As Seen By Tourists  11/10/2011 Havana Times: by Yusimi Rodriguez - "With time I’ve come to meet many tourists and I always wonder how the world looks to someone who can buy a round-trip ticket to any part of the planet like it’s something normal. Their lives in those countries seem like fiction to me and they stir my curiosity."

Afro–Cuban writer Yusimí Rodríguez López  10/21/2011 Diaspora Vibe: "Consequently, the online sphere of debate and cultural critique that’s been expanded to include such interlocutors as Sandra Alvarez, Yusimí and their mentor Lalita Matiatu (http://afrocubana.wordpress.com/ ) does not, like radio and television, reach a mass Cuban audience. Yet the limited access that does exist to these online sites of discursive and cultural struggle aren’t blocked or censored as are sites deemed to be “counterrevolutionary.” This suggests that these relatively new cyberspatial projects are the outcome of an ongoing negotiation between the counter-publics of civil society and the state, which struggles to sustain its legitimacy in a context of growing social disparities and ideological contestation. The international accessibility of these blogs and other e-publications facilitates an exchange of ideas beneficial to all concerned, ensuring that the embargo does not prevent the flow of ideas and intercultural communications."

Cuba Seen by Tourists (II): Christian Returns  10/9/2011 Havana Times: by Yusimi Rodriguez

Cuba Woman’s Small Business Secret  9/5/2011 Havana Times: by Yusimi Rodriguez

A ‘Maroon’ in Cuba’s Hip Hop  8/29/2011 Havana Times: by Yusimi Rodriguez - "Last week I attended the “Workshop on Gender” that took place within the framework of the Seventh Symposium on Hip Hop, dedicated on this occasion to peace. It was held from August 17–21 at the Plaza Cultural Center in Havana. There I met Lourdes Suarez, the “maroon” (Spanish: cimmaron, the word for “fugitive slave” used throughout Latin America) who along with her comrade Yasser “El Gallo” Miranda, makes up the Espejo Project."

Cuba’s Rotilla Festival Out in 2011, Back in 2012?  8/17/2011 Havana Times: by Yusimi Rodriguez - "Last year, as is customary, we were approached by the vice minister of Culture, Fernando Rojas, who had several meetings with us before the festival, one of them at the office of the Asociacion Hermano Saiz, which ironically now says that I’m not a member (I’ll say more about this in a minute). He told us: “Look guys, for us to help you, you have to help us. The group Omni Zona Franca cannot perform at the festival because they present a problem to national security and the interests of our policy on culture.” I don’t consider dangerous Omni. If an artist is able to destabilize a government, that government must be pretty fragile and unstable anyway. Recently, in a session of the Cuban parliament, President Raul Castro explained that there should not be intolerance towards criticism, that it’s necessary to listen to all sides for the country to grow. Notwithstanding, some of his vice ministers and vice presidents have some highly conservative views that would make you think we were still in the ‘80s."

Leaders Scare Me  7/11/2011 Havana Times: by Yusimi Rodriguez - "If you’re still surprised that so many women in love allow themselves to be run roughshod over by their lovers and continue to justify their actions, think of how the faithful followers of the dictators (those former leaders) do exactly the same thing. Then you’ll realize how horrifying it all is."

Lidiando con mi "pasa" (II)  7/7/2011 Negra Cubana: por Yusimi Rodriguez

Lidiando con mi "pasa»" (I)  6/14/2011 Negra Cubana: por Yusimi Rodriguez - "Aunque para algunos sectores de nuestro país, tan solidarios con la lucha de los afro-norteamericanos, black no era tan beautiful. A mi padre, que era miembro de la Unión de Jóvenes Comunistas (UJC), le cuestionaron su forma de llevar el pelo en su comité de base. El pelo largo, e incluso la barba, se consideraban sucios, antihigiénicos, indecentes, indignos de un miembro de la juventud comunista que debía ser la vanguardia del país. A mi amiga modelo la llamaron de la dirección del pre para preguntarle por qué llevaba el afro: "Los negros en Estados Unidos lo llevan para protestar, tienen motivos. ¿Pero usted contra qué está protestando?"

Afro-Cuban Women Debating Cuba Today  6/13/2011 Ethnolust 

Cuba’s First Black Model  4/1/2010 Havana Times: by Yusimi Rodriguez

Open Letter Condemning Recent Obstructions and Prohibitions of Social and Cultural Initiatives - Observatorio Crítico  12/28/2009 El Yuma 

‘The Revolution Made Blacks Human’  11/3/2009 Havana Times: by Yusimi Rodriguez - "The crowning point of my co-worker’s monologue was the moment he said that if he -the white son of rich people- had been able to sacrifice then blacks had to do the same, because “the Revolution had allowed blacks to become people.” I didn’t know if the guy had something else to add, because I cut into him calling him a racist, among other things. It turned into pretty ugly argument, over which he finally chose to retreat into his office."

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Last modified: February 08, 2012