An unusual social media contest captured the attention of Cubans by highlighting the alarming accumulation of trash in several neighborhoods on the island.
The event, called "Show Your Block," was organized spontaneously by the user identified on Facebook as Edmundo Dantés Junior, who urged citizens to post pictures of the trash piles that have become a part of the daily landscape of their communities.
The images shared by Cuban internet users show the harsh reality in localities across the country. From Cayo Hueso in Havana to Guantánamo, residents have posted photos of mountains of waste that block sidewalks, invade streets, and create an unhealthy environment for those living in these areas.
Photographs of Cienfuegos, Holguín, and neighborhoods like Marianao showed the accumulation of garbage on corners and sidewalks, such as the "small sample" published by Mabel Martell from Reina, Cienfuegos, or the debris mixed with waste at the corner of Cocos and San Indalecio in Havana.
Among the most striking images are those of the garbage dumps at the corner of Parque Fábrica in Luyanó, and the surroundings of Calle Condesa and Campanario in Los Sitios, where solid waste mixes with rubble from deteriorated buildings.
The participants in the contest not only showcased the unsanitary conditions of their environments but also added ironic comments to denounce government inaction. Examples of this are the posts by Waldo Martínez in Los Sitios, who depicted a street cluttered with trash next to crumbling buildings, or that of Ariel Castillo, who joked about a "permanent pit" in his corner in Marianao.
The contest, which is more than a game, is a form of protest, invites users to tag the location where the photos were taken. As an incentive, the photo with the most interactions is highlighted with the title "Winning Basundario," an ironic recognition that underscores citizens' desperation over government inaction.
This peculiar contest reflects not only the Cuban ingenuity to face adversities but also the serious health situation affecting multiple communities. Participants hope that visibility on social media will pressure authorities to take urgent measures to resolve this ingrained problem, which, far from being a simple inconvenience, jeopardizes public health and the quality of life on the island.
The public's frustration and the solution of the "incendiary torch"
The serious crisis in garbage collection in Cuba, and especially in its capital, has been evident in videos and images that have circulated on social media in recent months.
In mid-August, the desperation over the ineffective garbage collection in Santiago de Cuba reached a critical point, and citizens decided to start setting fire to the waste that accumulates in the streets.
According to reports shared by independent journalist Yosmany Mayeta Labrada, the residents of Santiago decided to set fire to the trash piles that have accumulated in their neighborhoods as a form of protest.
Days earlier, a garbage dump located in the middle of a street in the Mantilla neighborhood of Havana caught fire and caused inconveniences for the local population.
In January, residents of the Lawton neighborhood, in the Havana municipality of Diez de Octubre, decided to set fire to the accumulated garbage in a huge dump at the corners of San Anastasio and Carmen streets.
The report 'Havana, Capital of Waste,' prepared by the Cuban Citizen Audit Observatory (OCAC) and advised by the think tank Cuba Siglo 21, revealed that the Cuban regime fails to collect the equivalent of three Olympic-sized swimming pools of garbage every day in Havana.
The study asserts that the capital of the Island has become a "critical hotspot of health insecurity" because street-level landfills promote the proliferation of rats and mosquitoes, dengue and leptospirosis, and cause urban fires due to methane gas production.
What do you think?
COMMENTFiled under: