A video of Yusuam Palacios, a deputy in the Cuban National Assembly and director of the Fragua Martiana Museum, became a target of widespread mockery on social media this week following his intervention at the V International Homeland Colloquium, held from April 16 to 18 in Havana.
The reel, published on Facebook by Lázaro Torres Delgado, shows the official reflecting for just over a minute on the meaning of "Homeland" with quotes from José Martí, in a speech that users described as grandiloquent, empty, and incomprehensible.
In his speech, Palacios described the event as a "community of interests, a unity of purposes, a most delightful and comforting fusion of loves and hopes," and added that "homeland is humanity, the part of humanity in which we were born and see most closely."
The reaction in the comments was immediate and strong. The most frequently asked question, in various forms, was "What did he say?" and "I didn't understand anything," while dozens of users compared him to Cantinflas, the Mexican comedian famous for talking a lot without saying anything.
Some were more creative in the parody. "Translated: because practice is practice and without practice there is no practice," wrote one user. Another coined the term "Yusuañol" to describe his way of expressing himself: "But please... what did he mean... he spoke in Yusuañol."
One comment summed up the feelings of many: "He spent most of his life learning words to speak well and skipped ethics class."
Beyond the oratory-style mockery, numerous comments reflected the political fatigue of Cubans in response to official speeches. "Sons of the homeland dying of hunger, political prisoners, four million migrants in the last five years, persecution, lack of democracy," wrote one user. Another pointed out: "What they should be talking about, they don't: about potatoes, sweet potatoes, beans, because the Cuban people are starving."
Several commentators recalled that Palacios had previously praised the former Minister of Labor Marta Elena Feitó, who publicly stated that there are no beggars in Cuba. "This was the one who praised the minister of the beggars," noted a user. Another referred to him as a "deputy for a town he doesn't even know," referring to his representation of Sagua de Tánamo, Holguín.
A more extensive comment was direct in its political criticism: "Martí was anti-communist and if he were alive today, he would of course be anti-Castro. Fill yourselves with honor and perhaps history will forgive your lack of values."
The V International Patria Colloquium brought together 154 participants from 23 countries and was dedicated to the centenary of Fidel Castro and the 65th anniversary of Playa Girón. Díaz-Canel presided over its closure on April 18.
Palacios, who served as president of the Martian Youth Movement for 12 years until his dismissal in January 2023, has a long history of controversies on social media: he has called athletes who leave the national team cowards and mercenaries and vermin to participants in exile protests in Miami. The irony did not go unnoticed by users: his successor in the Martian Youth Movement sought political asylum in the United States in January 2025.
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