A woman living in the ruins of a building in Havana summed up the feelings of countless Cubans with a single phrase: "I hope that if Trump comes, as everyone says he will, maybe Cuba will improve a little, at least regarding food and housing, so that the poor don’t have to live in houses like this."
The testimony was collected by independent American journalist Oliya Scootercaster, a videographer associated with Freedom News TV, who posted the video on her X account (@ScooterCasterNY) on Thursday, following a visit to Havana at the end of March.
The woman, who has a small child, describes in stark terms the hardships she faces every day, such as continuous power outages throughout the capital, food shortages, a lack of milk for her child, and a shortage of medicines that forces her to buy them at inflated prices on the black market.
"When he comes, I at least hope that they give me a decent house and that this really changes, because this country is truly in flames," said the Cuban woman, who lives in a building without a shower and at risk of collapse, where she bathes with a bucket of water.
Regarding the blackouts, she was straightforward: "... the power went out across all of Havana, and it's not easy being without electricity. And the heat, the mosquitoes... that makes it stressful. We've bought rechargeable little lamps, because when you have a child, it's not easy."
The woman made it clear that her hope is not only personal: "I hope it's for the better, not for the worse. It's not just me in the family, but many families here in Cuba who are living poorly. And this is what everyone is hoping for."
Scootercaster reported that during its journey through Havana, the most frequently asked question on the streets was "When is Trump coming?" It documented extreme conditions such as nighttime queues at banks with withdrawals limited to about 20 dollars per person and gasoline in the black market priced at 4,000 Cuban pesos per liter.
This testimony adds to a chain of similar voices from the island. Last Thursday, a Santiago grandmother called on Trump to intervene in Cuba "in any way possible" in a video published by the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU).
In January, a young man pleaded with "Papito Trump" to put "an end to this already." And on March 30, a Cuban known on TikTok as "Miguel y las gallinas" warned the head of the White House: "If you don't come, I'm going to come for you".
Since January 2026, Cuba has been going through the worst energy and humanitarian crisis in decades, exacerbated by the cut in Venezuelan oil supply following the capture of Nicolás Maduro, which accounted for between 80% and 90% of Cuba's imports. The economy has experienced a 23% decline since 2019, and an additional contraction of 7.2% is projected for this year.
Trump has maintained a consistent rhetoric regarding the island. On March 16, he said "I believe I will have the honor of taking Cuba"; on March 27 he declared in Miami "Cuba is next"; and on March 30, he promised that the United States "will be there to help" when the regime collapses, describing Cuba as "a disaster, a failed state".
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