The Cuban content creator Diame Espinosa published an emotional video on TikTok this week, in which she recounts her return to Cuba with her baby, with the sole purpose of introducing the little one to her grandparents for the first time.
In the 58-second clip, Diame acknowledges that before the trip, he received numerous warnings from his followers about the conditions on the island: dengue, mosquitoes, and the general shortages that Cuba is experiencing.
"There were many comments about whether there were peacocks, about the mosquitoes, about taking care of her. Of course, I knew what I was going to face, but I also knew that there would be countless people waiting for us, ready to give us all their love," the young woman explained.
Despite those warnings, Diame made the decision to travel with confidence and certainty.
"Because what could be better than the love of grandparents, and I wasn’t going to let my baby miss out on that. It’s the only way I have to keep them a little closer," she affirmed.
The concerns of their followers were not unfounded: Cuba is facing active outbreaks of dengue and chikungunya in 2025 and 2026, with at least 44 deaths officially acknowledged by the government itself, in addition to a severe crisis characterized by food shortages, insufficient medications, and constant power outages.
However, for Diame, the weight of those realities does not surpass the value of family reunion.
"It doesn't matter the lacks, it doesn't matter the needs, what matters more is the love of our family, the hugs, the affection of all those people who care for us and who miss us," she stated in the video.
The case of Diame is part of a trend that has solidified on TikTok over the past few years: Cuban emigrants returning to the island to participate in family reunions, especially with babies born abroad who are visiting Cuba for the first time. In June 2025, a Cuban woman traveled with her baby so that her 99-year-old great-grandmother could meet him, in a multigenerational reunion that also went viral on that platform.
In April 2026, another Cuban sent her baby's clothes to her mother in Cuba so she could feel her close, in a gesture that moved thousands of users.
This wave of reunions documented on social media is a direct reflection of the largest migratory crisis in recent Cuban history: between 2020 and 2024, more than 1.4 million Cubans left the island, and by 2023, 38% of Cuban families had at least one member living abroad.
This massive diaspora has led to an entire generation of children born outside of Cuba who do not know their grandparents, making each trip back an experience filled with profound emotional weight.
Diame closed his message with a dedication to those who have yet to fulfill that dream: "I wish that if you still haven't achieved this dream, you do so very, very soon, because I know that the embrace of family is the most important thing we have in our lives."
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