Here at Huck, we want to talk about Cuba. As Obama embarks on a historic visit to the island, the next step in the restoration of diplomatic relations between Cuba and their most powerful neighbour, there are changes afoot for this island nation.
Sure, there’s been a lot of talk about the government in Cuba, and what this new relationship might mean for U.S. corporations and the powerful in both states. But what does the end of trade embargoes, increased access to the internet and the continued repression of dissenting voices really mean? This week we’re looking at life from the ground up. The rebels, punks, skaters and firestarters paddling against the flow to make their voices heard. As the week goes on, we’ll be speaking to political dissidents, artists, entrepreneurs and people going against the grain to get an insight into what’s happening in Cuba in 2016.
Keep an eye out here for all our Cuba week stories, but we’ll be adding the highlights below throughout #CubaWeek.
Meet the Ladies in White – Cuba’s most notorious dissidents
The Long Read: The story of Charlie Hill, an FBI fugitive in Havana
Cuba’s first-generation entrepreneurs have mixed feelings about ‘the changes’
The female pioneers driving Cuba’s emerging skate scene
Dreams of skating in Cuba – a tale of two young boarders
The photographer capturing Cuba’s LGBT scene in 2016
For the Record: After 10 Years, one of Cuba’s first female DJs returns home
Meet the cyclists and mechanics rebuilding Cuban bike culture against the odds
Life in landfill – the Cuban poverty hidden from sight
Cubans are online and hustling despite restrictions and censorship
In pictures: Carl De Keyzer captures the decline of Cuban communism
The Cuban musicians you need to be checking out right now
Cebe Loomis takes an analogue adventure across Cuba
Obama’s historic visit to Cuba is over, now what happens?
Films about the new, free Cuba
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