Imagining the Fire: Conversations on African American | Episode #2
Today’s destination in ‘Imaginar el fuego: conversaciones sobre lo africamericano’ is Cuba.
Many narratives and images from the island maintain an idea of how life is lived in the country. However, others have remained hidden for many reasons. With our guest today, journalist Abraham Jimenez Enoa, we will address those related to racism.
As in other Latin American countries, racism is also denied in Cuba. However, it is enough to see who occupies the places of power, has access to higher education, or is in the most vulnerable social strata. As @jimenezenoa states, “Cuba is not a white country, and for 60 years, all of Cuba’s leaders have been white. Less than 10% of university students are black.”
Abraham is an independent journalist. He founded, along with other colleagues, the magazine El Estornudo, where he did narrative journalism until 2020. For his work, he was persecuted by the regime and was detained. He was forced to leave Cuba in 2022 and now lives in Barcelona. He received the International Press Freedom Award from the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and the Michael Jacobs Fellowship from the Gabo Foundation. Earlier this year, he published Chronicles La Isla Oculta (The Hidden Island).
Now, he is preparing a book about his experience in Europe and his encounter with racism that has other faces. “Here, in Europe, it is the first time I feel judged just for existing. In Cuba, I was judged on a political level for doing something that the government prevented from being done, but here suddenly, just for existing, I feel judged.”
