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Yusuam Palacios, president of the Martiano Youth Movement of Cuba and a member of the National Assembly, is one of the government representatives on the Island whose speeches are often the most contradictory.
This Tuesday, Palacios published a personal statement on his Facebook profile about what the commitment to the "revolution" of the Castro brothers means to him.
"Being a revolutionary is not about changing anything; it’s about changing what is necessary," he said, referencing the famous phrase from the late Fidel Castro, "Revolution is changing everything that needs to be changed."
He also clarified that "being revolutionary means always returning to the original project, with arguments and reasons, and never driven by hate or corrupting money." For Palacios, the Cuban people have always wanted nothing but the revolution, socialism, and Fidel's ideas.
Palacios went viral on social media last year when he criticized then-President of the United States, Barack Obama, during his visit to the Island. "Let us not be fooled, Obama is not a friend of Cuba; he wants us to forget our history so that once we open the door, he can take in his hands (those of North American imperialism) the fruit that has always represented our homeland," he said at that time.
During the recent elections in Cuba, it was stated that Raúl Castro was the spiritual leader of the Cubans.
Here is the text published on his Facebook page:
For Cuba this May 1st, a day of victory and commitment to the Revolution.
What does it mean to be a revolutionary in today’s #Cuba? First and foremost, it means being a patriot. Let us remember the Maestro when, in his speech in Tampa on November 26, 1891, he stated: “For if I were to choose one good over all the others in matters concerning my homeland, a fundamental good that would serve as the foundation and principle for all the people of the country, without which the other goods would be deceptive and insecure, that would be the good I would choose: I want the foremost law of our republic to be the reverence of Cubans for the full dignity of man.”
And how can this Marti-inspired idea be understood today in a #Cuba that upholds its anti-imperialist, humanist, and ethical stance? The full dignity of human beings—their worship and respect, their guarantee—becomes the fundamental basis of Marti's vision of a republic: “Either the republic is founded on the complete character of each of its children, their habit of working with their hands and thinking for themselves, the full exercise of self and the respect, akin to family honor, for the integrity of others; or, ultimately, the passion for the dignity of man—or the republic is not worth a single tear from our women or a drop of blood from our brave.”
Being a revolutionary is not about changing anything and everything; it's about making necessary changes with a clear understanding of the historical moment and being attentive to the reality we live in. To be revolutionary is not to engage in ruthless criticism; rather, it is to exercise judgment with ethics and respect for dignity. Being revolutionary means continually returning to the original project, supported by arguments and reasons, and never motivated by hatred or corrupting wealth. It requires an awareness, like that of Martí, that what a group desires may falter, while what a people truly want endures. In Cuba, what has endured is what the people have wanted: the Revolution, Socialism, and the ideas of Fidel.
To be #martianos is to be good, just, and patriotic, to live rooted in our origins, from the radical position of those who do not fear thought and do not cower in the face of challenges. Being martianos means being anti-imperialists, daring, and eternally dissatisfied with what is wrong, with what weakens us. We must continue to nurture revolutionary unity, because the key remains: unite to overcome; not divide and conquer.
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