IDENTIDADES 1 ENGLISH IDENTIDADES 5 ENGLISH | Page 62

apologies would be needed for so many
errors that the list would be never-ending.
Of course, there is still homophobia, but we
live in a Latin American country, and I
don’t believe we are the most machista or
discriminatory one. Unfortunately, homophobia is something that persists, and only
the passage of a great deal of time and
through good education will we manage to
eradicate it once and for all times.

How do you make a living?
I am a writer and visual artist, but basically
support myself from y partner’s work, although I do write for some digital newspapers. I sometimes get help from my mother,
and from a friend’s mother who lives in the
United States. All the money goes to food,
because I cannot allow myself the luxury of
buying clothing or shoes. At this time, I
have no plans to work for the State, since
you have to have at least a ninth-grade education, which I don’t, so it would be hard
for me to find a job, unless I do something
to be able to become self-employed. It’s
almost impossible to live off of writing;
I’ve considered becoming a floor cleaner at
a hospital o clinic, because I won’t always
have a partner at my side.

What rights might gays need? Does
CENESEX do a good job?
From my point of view, we are always left
behind, no matter what; it is time for gay
marriage, already. What’s the problem?
Homosexuals, both men and women,
should be able to adopt children, and people
on the street should not be justified in creating a fuss or shouting insults at a transvestite or transsexual for walking about.

Do you think the rapprochement with
the Unites States will have a positive effect?

I cannot comment on the CENESEX, as
I’ve never had anything to do with the institution. I’m not so sure that Mariela Castro
is getting such a great job done, because
every time I’ve seen her at the Conference
against Homophobia, at the Cuba Pavilion,
I see that she is a charismatic and formal
woman who speaks very well. Yet, I ask
myself why she doesn’t just finally speak
concretely about the situation of homosexuals in Cuba. What is her real power to make
decisions about the gay community? I don’t
think one can speak of a community, because I don’t know if it even exists. The
two times I got to enjoy the gay congas en
El Vedado, I saw her defending the cause of
the Cuban Five; I never saw here carrying a
poster about wanting gay marriage or equality for all. I think mixing politics and homosexuals is terrible. One thing has nothing
to do with the other.

I was very pleased when I heard the news.
It is a political situation that for more than
fifty years has hurt no one more than Cuban
people on both sides. Many us hope to be
able to see improvements, both regarding
communications and our food situation,
which are the two that most affect us. I
hope the future is prosperous, that things
change more quickly, and that I can be alive
to see it. I guess there has been a bit of a
rapprochement with homosexuals, too, because the greater flow of information is
allowing us to be more aware of what is
going on at a global level, and make comparisons with other, real gay communities
that function well. We have been isolated
from the world, but an unrestricted and
inexpensive Internet would allow us to
open our eyes.

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