By Carlos Gonzalez Penalva on August 5, 2025
The recent appearance of Israel Rojas, leader of the duo Buena Fe, on the program La sobremesa on the digital platform La Joven Cuba has sparked an interesting debate on the fringes of the Cuban revolutionary intelligentsia. His presence, polite but firm, honest and serene, has been celebrated by many as a gesture of openness and courage. And it undoubtedly is. But this recognition should not lead us to overlook the terrain where the exchange takes place. Because in politics—and especially in the cultural battle—the setting matters as much as the words, and there is no innocent dialogue when the script is written by the adversary. (more…)
A Chronicle by Katiuska Blanco Castineira on August 5, 2025 from Mexico City
Illustration by Isis de Lázaro.
Before our eyes, the small terracotta deities, the dresses embroidered with eye-shaped hems, pure wool cloaks, obsidian, turquoise, shell, and coral masks, silver calendars inlaid with mother-of-pearl, clay figurines, filigree earrings, bracelets made of genuine metals, flowered stone chests, dreams of blown glass, colorful serapes, and above all, words. The vendor tells us about all the wonders in his shop, especially the customs of the ancient inhabitants of the city of Teotihuacan, (more…)
August 3, 2025
Venezuelan chef at work: the Zulia government has created kitchens dedicated to vulnerable people.
Venezuela’s Bolivarian Revolution has done it again: it is once again on the verge of eradicating hunger in Venezuela. This was recognized by the Un Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), IFAD, UNICEF, WFP, and WHO in their annual report on The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2025 (SOFI 2025), addressing high food prices and inflation for food security and nutrition. (more…)
By Becca Renk on August 4, 2025
Nicaragua’s 2025 nutrition census. photos: Becca Renk
I remember the aftermath of Hurricane Mitch, Francisco was two years old, his thin legs and swollen feet were covered in sores. Straw blond hair stuck to his head as he listlessly nursed from his teenage mother’s breast. He weighed 13 ½ pounds.
It was the summer of 1999, and I was weighing babies in Nueva Vida. I’d come to Nicaragua in the aftermath of Hurricane Mitch to help in any way I could through the Jubilee House Community and its project in Nicaragua, the Center for Development in Central America (JHC-CDCA). (more…)
By Alejandra Garcia on August 3, 2025
Nayib Bukele
El Salvador has crossed a critical line this week. Last Thursday, Congress approved a controversial constitutional reform that opens the door to indefinite presidential reelection with no term limits—a change that undermines the democratic principles established in the 1983 Constitution. (more…)
By Fidel Rendón Matienzo on August 3, 2025
photo: periodico26
While Trump is making cuts in benefits for the poorest he is moving forward on spending $200 million to build a ballroom in the White House. Meanwhile the Cuban government with its blockaded economy is set to increase the pensions of retired workers.
Although the partial increase in pensions starting in September now covers 1,324,599 people, or 79% of beneficiaries, the measure offers some hope for many retirees and pensioners due to disability or the death of a spouse. (more…)
By Frei Betto on August 1, 2025
John Gast’s 1872 painting “American Progress”, depicting Manifest Destiny
War is like Janus: it has more than one face. In addition to military warfare, there are also diplomatic, economic, political, and cultural wars. Cultural warfare consists of imposing the dominant group’s version of reality on the dominated. This is what the entertainment industries of Disney and Hollywood have always done. (more…)
By Berta Joubert-Ceci on August 2, 2025
The governor of Puerto Rico has declared a state of emergency and activated the National Guard after thousands of homes were left without water. Photo: Prensa Latina
The governments that have administered this country, especially in recent years, have completely ignored their main objective, which is to ensure public welfare. This means guaranteeing all the basic services necessary for the people to live a dignified life: primarily health, housing, and education. These services must be accompanied by a complementary network of other services such as telecommunications, water, and energy. But as the neoliberal process deepens colonization, the corruption that accompanies privatization also advances unchecked, with no restrictions within government structures to defend the people. In other words, in Puerto Rican slang, we are “algarete,” that is, out of control, disorganized, adrift. (more…)