Travel + Leisure: "Four Ways To Help The Cuban People Right Now"

Above, yours truly at Havana Port in April 2919.

In April 2019, I took a cruise (one of the last ones before they were halted) to Havana, Cuba. I found the Cuban people to be quite friendly to us. Right now, they are suffering at the hands of their government and are deserving of help.

For those wanting to help the people of Cuba during this time of uncertainty, four suggestions have been posted from an unlikely source.

Travel + Leisure posted "Four Ways To Help The Cuban People Right Now". 

They start it with:

In an unprecedented move, thousands of Cubans took to the streets in over 40 different cities last Sunday to protest their government. Cuba is a socialist dictatorship that has been ruling the island nation for over 62 years. Ever since Fidel Castro took over in 1959, Cuba has been subjected to a one party rule (the Communist Party of Cuba), which controls all forms of mediums and does not protect the right to free speech or assembly for its citizens.

The protests come as the country is facing severe economic scarcities in food, water, and other basic necessities. The Cuban government's domestic inefficiencies, combined with the U.S. embargo, has crippled the economy for decades. Adding fuel to the fire has been the pandemic, as Cuba heavily relies on tourism. 

However, while citizens shared their grievances for the economic situation, they also protested their government. Chants like "libertad" ("freedom") and "Patria y Vida" (homeland and life), as well as explicit cries about the current president, Miguel Diaz-Canel, were heard everywhere. 

After news broke about the protests, the Cuban exile community all over the globe rallied together with the protesters asking for the end of a dictatorship.

If you're looking for ways to show your support for Cuba, read on for how to help right now.

Above, a Havana bazaar in 2019. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Normally, I would direct readers to the website at this point to see what are the four ways to help. As this is important, I will now list the four ways. I'll still provide a link to the full article as it provides details on each along with donation links.

Here's what they suggest:

1. Write to your representatives.

2. Listen to Cuban voices.

3. Donate recharges to cell phones.

4. Drink some Cuba libres in Miami.

To read the full article, go here.