Cuban citizen Cesario Navas once again reported on social media the worsening of extreme poverty on the Island and the rise in the number of people living on the streets, in a message accompanied by images that highlight the precarious conditions many are facing in Cuba.
“Cubans! Raise your hearts!” begins his post on Facebook, in a call not to remain indifferent to the suffering of others: “We cannot be indifferent to the state and familial abandonment of hundreds of sick individuals, without roofs, starving, surviving in doorways, parks, and uninhabitable buildings.”
In his post, he lamented that each day the number of people asking for help to eat is growing. "Every day, the number of people knocking on your door asking for bread, a little soup, or money to ease the long involuntary fast is increasing. It hurts, it really hurts!..," he wrote.
In his message, he also questioned the institutional response to this reality: “We must demand a response from government institutions to reverse these painful and humiliating events.” He also called on religious, fraternal, political, and labor organizations to participate in humanitarian efforts for the most vulnerable.
Navas criticized the use of the official term to refer to the poorest: “They are not ‘vulnerable people’ (according to the euphemism used by the rulers and their spokespersons), they are hungry people, sick in extreme poverty.”
"The Revolution, yes, yes, has abandoned many of its children." He added: "To the vast majority. That is an irrefutable reality."
The circulated images show men lying in doorways and on sidewalks, some with makeshift cardboard or blankets, while others sit next to their few belongings. In contrast, there is also a photograph of Cuban leaders on an official tour, which has provoked reactions of outrage among users.
In the comments, several internet users expressed pain and frustration about the situation. "History of Cuba must be rewritten... This reality should not remain hidden," wrote one user. Another commented, "What pain, my God." There were also those who noted that "The contrast of images speaks for itself" and others who called to "say enough and take to the streets."
In April 2023, I had already alerted about the increase in homeless individuals and described the presence of “people discarded by families and by the revolutionary government” on the streets, in doorways, and in parks throughout the country, a situation reflected in reports of the rise of vagrants in Cuba.
In February 2026, he once again pointed out severe distortions by stating that medications with official prices of cents or a few Cuban pesos were not available in pharmacies, but were seen in the informal market at prices of hundreds of pesos. He denounced that “What is abnormal becomes normal in the land of Liborio: corruption, the theft of controlled medications, complicity, negligence… are they caused by the infamous blockade or are they products of a government that survives on life support?” amidst allegations of abusive drug prices in the informal market.
Days later, he recounted that he paid 8,000 Cuban pesos for a trip in Havana and stated: “Inflation is through the roof. The worst part is that the ‘gordocracy’ in power does not want to lose their privileges and continues to sacrifice the vast majority of the people. We are worse off than in 1958. Hunger is widespread; only the new ‘robolutionary bourgeoisie,’ the high-ranking officials, generals, and their families are doing fine. At 2:00 a.m., I am sleepless, with a dog blackout,” in a context marked by the rising cost of transport and the energy crisis.
His report comes at a time when religious communities have taken on the distribution of food to the elderly and vulnerable people, as recently occurred with the delivery of food to an elderly home in Holguín due to the worsening crisis, in an environment where shortages and inflation are diminishing the purchasing power of retirees and workers.
It also coincides with testimonies such as that of an 83-year-old woman who expressed: “I worked in this country for 57 years, and what do I have?” and “An 83-year-old woman going hungry. How is this possible?”, reflecting the precariousness faced by many elderly people, as captured in the account of a Cuban grandmother who claims to have nothing after decades of work.
In his most recent post, Navas insisted that the response cannot be limited to isolated charity. “We must seek alternatives in the neighborhoods to feed those people, who lack everything, even hope,” he wrote.
"Cuba belongs to everyone!" he concluded.
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