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The Union of Young Communists of Cuba (UJC) issued an official statement on Thursday asserting that its members are fully prepared, without hesitation, to offer even their own lives for the Cuban Revolution, in support of the speech delivered by leader Miguel Díaz-Canel at the event commemorating the 65th anniversary of the Proclamation of the Socialist Character of the Revolution and the victory at Playa Girón.
The document was shared on social media by Meyvis Estévez Echevarría, the first secretary of the organization, and reproduced in full by the Cuban News Agency.
The statement begins with a quote from Díaz-Canel and transforms it into a collective commitment of Cuban youth: "Resisting the onslaught of daily invasions is the epic we are writing today, the best legacy to those who have fallen (...) As long as there is a woman and a man willing to give their lives for the Revolution, we will prevail!"
The text also denounces the Executive Order signed by Trump on January 29, 2026, which imposed tariffs on countries supplying oil to Cuba, labeling it as "qualitatively superior genocidal in nature" and comparing it to the Mallory Memorandum of 1960.
"The U.S. government naively expects that the Cuban youth will be the instrument for its domination; however, the Cuban history built by its young people and the 64 years of struggle of our organization demonstrate that they are making a clear miscalculation. We will not be passive subjects in the face of external coercion," states the communiqué.
The statement is part of a sustained rhetorical escalation by the regime in recent weeks.
On April 12, Díaz-Canel stated in an interview with NBC News that "I am not afraid. I am willing to give my life for the revolution. If necessary, we will die, because as our national anthem says: to die for the homeland is to live."
Two days before the declaration of the UJC, the leader insisted to Opera Mundi that "it is possible they may try to attack Cuba. We must prepare ourselves so there are no surprises or defeats".
The message from the UJC is also part of the campaign "My Signature for the Homeland", launched on April 19 during the central event at Playa Girón in Ciénaga de Zapata, Matanzas, which aims to gather support from communities, workplaces, and schools across the country.
Critics argue that these campaigns act as mechanisms of coercion, where non-participation can lead to labels such as "counter-revolutionary" and result in workplace or academic sanctions.
The rhetoric of "giving one's life for the Revolution" contrasts with the reality of the organization that proclaims it. The membership of the UJC fell by 32% between 2007 and 2024, from 609,000 to 415,000 members, primarily due to the massive exodus of young Cubans.
Cuba has lost more than one million inhabitants since 2021, and 97.61% of young people aged 18 to 30 disapprove of the government according to independent studies.
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