Young people from the project Fuera de la Caja Cuba publicly responded to the official program Con Filo and its host, Michel Torres Corona, after he pointed them out on television and labeled them as “evangelicals” and propagandists.
In a video shared on social media, the members of the project directly questioned the accusations and denounced what they see as an attempt at defamation.
"Did you know that defamation is a crime? For someone who enjoys making up laws, did you know that defamation is a crime?" they stated.
In their message, they rejected being compared to Nazis or being disqualified due to their religious beliefs. "Compared to Nazis. And now they call us evangelical propagandists," they said with evident indignation.
Young people also defended their critical stance towards the Cuban political system. "The situation in Cuba is inherent to communism. All countries where collectivist ideas have been implemented have ended in misery, hunger, and depression," they stated.
To support their argument, they mentioned historical episodes associated with communist regimes.
"Don't you remember Mao Zedong's Great Leap Forward, which resulted in around 30 million deaths? The Cambodian famine that wiped out 25% of the population? Or Stalin's Holodomor in Ukraine, which resulted in over four million victims?" they pointed out.
Far from taking offense at the labels used by the government, they insisted: "For us, it is not an offense to be called evangelicals. We are united, we share the same values, and above all, the same cause."
The message concludes with a direct challenge to Torres Corona: "I know you are a fan of ours, but next time, do a little more research."
The response comes days after, on the program Con Filo, Michel Torres Corona criticized content creators who are critical of the Cuban political system, accusing them of downplaying the impact of the U.S. embargo.
“These young evangelicals (...) have echoed the worst and most outdated anti-communist propaganda, which even refuses to accept what is practically unquestionable for those who want a better world,” he said.
The presenter stated that "it is insulting that due to ignorance or other interests, this genocidal act is minimized (...) and certainly do not believe what the evangelicals say with their Trump hats, who are more reactionary than Telemundo, indeed."
After the broadcast of the program, the project Fuera de la Caja reported an incident they consider intimidating.
According to another video report, a man appeared at their home claiming to be "an agent of State Security, an agent from MININT," identified as Dainel Correa Quintana, under the "pretext" of conducting "a sort of census" in the building.
The young people described the visit as "suspicious" and explained that their father refused to provide information.
They also claimed that the supposed agent had previously gone to their grandmother's house "posing as a friend" in order to locate their whereabouts.
Far from being intimidated, they reiterated their determination: "We knew this was going to happen, that the persecution was going to begin at any moment," and they firmly added, "We are going to keep making videos… they will not intimidate us, they will not silence us."
The group, which has more than seven thousand followers on Instagram, asserts that dissent is not a crime. "Expressing oneself is not a crime," they stated, and they reminded that "dissenting is not a crime, especially not against a political project that has brought us so much misery."
The name of the project, Fuera de la Caja Cuba, alludes to the concept of thinking freely, unbound by a single narrative. In a context where the official discourse dominates state media, its commitment to questioning the governmental narrative has garnered support on social media, but also attacks from spaces aligned with the regime.
Amid harassment and discredit, young people reiterate that they will continue to defend their right to express their opinions and dissent, despite the pressure and disparagement.
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