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The comedian and actor Ulises Toirac posted a comment on Facebook supporting the actor Luis Alberto García Novoa, who had publicly denounced being without electricity and water for over 48 hours in his building in Havana.
Far from being a mere gesture of solidarity, the text transforms into a direct critique of those who speak on behalf of the Cuban people from positions of privilege, without experiencing firsthand the energy crisis that plagues the Island.
Toirac acknowledges in his post that he himself has gone "many days" without reaching three or four hours of electricity, but he admits that his situation is less severe than García's, who was without power for six days.
"The helplessness of having your power outages go on without a transformer being repaired, and suffering for four, six, or eight days without electricity because of it, must be catastrophic," he wrote.
From that position of conscious empathy, the comedian delivers his most powerful critique: "NOBODY is capable of suffering in the same way. NOBODY feels what each person feels. No matter how much empathy, no matter how much solidarity. And if their empathy is forced, convenient, political, self-serving, beneficial for other interests, EVEN LESS."
The target of his message is those who, from their comfort, pretend to represent the pain of others.
"From the home alwayslú, from the full pantry, from the chosen temperature, from waking up to breakfast without thinking about what else to do so that the family doesn’t go empty-handed. DON'T TALK ANYMORE AS IF YOU KNOW WHAT I'M SUFFERING, JONE!", wrote Toirac, in a statement that directly targets officials and spokespersons of the regime.
Toirac's comment comes days after García warned the regime that he would not remain silent about the crisis. "I will not be silent. Know that," the actor wrote on June 24, after reporting that his building had been without light or water for over two days due to a transformer failure.
García closed that post with a double-edged phrase: "This country needs TRANSFORMERS. Electric ones and all kinds."
Both actors have been using their social media as a platform for protest for weeks. On June 23, García directly challenged the regime asking, "Do you have anything in mind that could make our lives a little less miserable for July and August?" Previously, he had been even more direct: "I want to see them suffering from hunger", demanding that the leaders endure the same hardships as the people.
For his part, Toirac stated that "Cuba is in a maze with no solution", and on Friday he published a satirical parody of the song "Ódiame" with the line "Go away without measures or mercy!", referring to the package of 176 economic measures approved by the National Assembly on June 18.
The complaints from both artists come in the context of the worst energy crisis Cuba has faced in decades.
In May, the electricity deficit reached a record of 2,174 MW, with only 976 MW available against a demand of 3,150 MW.
In June, the Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric plant recorded its eleventh disconnection of the year, and areas of Havana such as Playa experienced blackouts lasting up to 40 continuous hours.
Toirac closed his publication with an affectionate nod to his colleague: "Lucho, may the electricity be with you. And the Force."
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