A Cuban identified as Sory posted a video in the Facebook group "Cuba's Repressor List" where she vehemently responds to a regime supporter who had asked her "And who are you?" in a previous video.
In her response, Sory chose to first describe who she was before: "An ignorant Cuban like you. Ignorant, communist, who didn't question anything," she asserted firmly before the camera.
The woman, who according to her social media currently lives in Barcelona, detailed her path within the Cuban political system: "Belonging to the UJC, PSC, a recommended pioneer, all that sort of thing. Okay? And I questioned nothing. An ignorant person just like you are now."
The contrast between that past and her present is the core of the message: "Now I am a person who thinks, who analyzes, who questions, and who, thank God, has cleared her mind of all that filth that was put in my head since I was a child."
The reactions to the video were predominantly favorable towards the Cuban, with many users celebrating her public acknowledgment of her past sympathies or involvement within the system and her change in stance. Comments like "to err is human, to correct is wise," "what matters is having opened our eyes," or "it's never too late" set a tone of support. Several internet users agreed that indoctrination has affected entire generations: "it was a whole people that were deceived and indoctrinated" and "we were all victims of Castro-communist ideology."
Other comments embraced her testimony as an experience shared by many Cubans inside and outside the island. "That's how we all were," wrote one user, while another stated, "I was ignorant too until I opened my eyes." Along the same lines, supportive messages flooded in such as "well said," "excellent response," "bravo," and "brave woman," in addition to phrases like "you are free now," "welcome to the free world," or "sending you a kiss for awakening."
There were also those who insisted that a change in mindset does not erase the past, but it can be valid if there is a sincere rectification. "It was their experience," commented one user, while another pointed out, "it is valid to rectify." However, there were criticisms from those who reproached them for having been part of official structures or questioned the authenticity of their change: "you have already done a lot of harm," "you are still ignorant," or "you were a wolf in sheep's clothing," wrote some.
Most of the comments ended up supporting the Cuban woman and using her story as an example of an awakening that many claim to have experienced as well. Amid praises, criticisms, and reproaches for her past, the message that resonated the most was the same: it is never too late to break free from indoctrination and demand freedom for Cuba. Overall, the debate reflected a common tension among Cubans: the divide between those who believe many were victims of indoctrination and those who think that supporting the regime entails a personal responsibility that is hard to erase.
The testimony personally illustrates the ideological indoctrination system that the Cuban regime has applied since childhood through the José Martí Pioneer Organization (OPJM), founded in 1961 under the motto "Pioneers for Communism, We Will Be Like Che."
In March, children from schools in Old Havana staged anti-imperialist tribunals against the United States during events commemorating the 65th anniversary of the OPJM and the 64th of the UJC, presided over by the top leaders of both organizations.
Sory's video is part of a growing phenomenon among Cubans who, after emigrating or gaining access to independent information, undergo a process of ideological break from the system in which they were raised from childhood.
Sory closed his message with a direct exhortation to his listener: "Question yourself, question yourself and start asking things so you can stop being so ignorant and so stupid."
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