The baritone and cultural promoter Ulises Aquino Guerra published on Facebook a reflection titled “Open Wounds, Too Deeply Damaged” in which he dismantles the official discourse of the regime regarding the “defense” of the territory and points out that the real threat to the Cuban people comes from within.
On the eve of July 26, the anniversary of the assault on the Moncada Barracks, the artist chose to pose a question that serves as the core of his entire argument: "What will we defend in the event of an aggression by the United States against Cuba?"
Aquino acknowledges that the pressure from Washington—through sanctions against GAESA, tourism, public health, and officials—exacerbates the shortages faced by the Cuban people, but warns that the problems on the Island predate any mandate from Trump.
"Our people do not only suffer from the measures that the United States imposes on Cuba; they also endure the consequences of grave mistakes and the burdens and historical debts stemming from the capricious and misguided management of the economy," wrote the artist.
The baritone lists a long chain of failures in economic policy: the shelved guidelines, measures for agriculture, reorganization, banking, and Decree 349, among others, concluding that none of these initiatives have addressed the historical demands of those who dare to question the government.
In one of the most straightforward passages of the text, Aquino accuses the regime of having "turned dissent or civic protest into a crime, repressing those who exercise their rights with brute force and lengthy sentences."
The artist warns that this "institutional deafness and blindness can lead to a state of extreme violence that will be impossible to reverse," and demands that the government consult the people to find out if they wish to continue with the current system or prefer "a different life, one that is dignified, free, without political discrimination, and without exclusions for differing opinions."
"Maintaining this state of affairs is a circumstantial illusion that will ultimately be deeply questioned and judged, and it will be impossible to demonstrate that such sacrifice, shattered lives, and the miseries and calamities inflicted were worth it," he emphasizes.
It is not the first time that Aquino has publicly confronted the regime in recent weeks. On July 12, he published a letter addressed to his deceased revolutionary parents in which he told them that "everything you believed and made us believe was wrong."
On June 19, following the Extraordinary Plenary of the Communist Party that approved 176 economic measures, Aquino called for the government's resignation and described the reforms as insufficient and belated: "The most honorable, the dignified, and the logical thing is for them to resign."
In his new reflection, the artist concludes with a phrase that directly addresses the historical responsibility of Cuban leaders: "It is time to decide how history will remember them."
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