Just a few hours have passed since the reggaeton player Roberto Hidalgo Ponts Yomil released his video on YouTube I am from Cuba and already several official voices have charged against the musician with offenses and with the threat of prosecution for the images used in the material.
From the website of the Union of Artists and Writers of Cuba (UNEAC), with a text signed by journalist Pere de la Hoz and entitled These are not Cubans, A call was made to prosecute him under Article 204 of the Penal Code, which punishes those who “defame, denigrate or despise the heroes and martyrs of the Fatherland” in public.
The threat was also published in the newspaper Granma and extends to the author of the audiovisual, the young director Yimit Ramírez, although at no time does he mention his names.
They punctually criticize the use of the image of various heroes of Cuban independence, such as Antonio Maceo, Mariana Grajales and José Martí, as well as others in the style of Julio Antonio Mella and Camilo Cienfuegos. In the audiovisual, and through digital editing tools, Ramírez makes these historical figures sing the lyrics of the song, which has been taken as disrespectful by official spokesmen.
The threat was also published in the newspaper ‘Granma’ and extends to the author of the audiovisual, the young director Yimit Ramírez
“Those who denigrate the symbols of the Fatherland are not Cubans. They cannot be when in an act of infamous nature they manipulate, pervert and degrade the heroes who gave their blood and sacrificed their lives for the dignity of all , that of their parents and siblings, neighbors and close circles, on and off the island, even that of themselves before they decided to denature and start rolling out elementary ethical values, ”reads the text of the Hoz.
The journalist, who also holds the position of vice president at UNEAC, says Yomil is “someone who has grown up in the realm of so-called urban music” and is an example of the “divorce between fame and talent.” At your discretion, I am from Cuba it is a “pamphlet” aimed at achieving “profits in the Floridian subcultural circuits,” the “blessing of the furious American anti-Cuban politicians,” and “the hysterical and uneducated YouTubers at their service.”
About Ramírez he said that he is an artist who “prefers scandal to creation” and recalls that the filmmaker “once tried to mask behind allegedly transgressive narratives and irreverent thematic approaches (…) offense and lack of respect for what José Martí represents for his compatriots “. De la Hoz refers to the censorship at the Mostra Jove of the Cuban Institute of the Art and Cinematographic Industry (ICAIC), in 2018, in the feature film I want to make a movie after the controversy that generated a dialogue that, in the opinion of the institution was disrespectful to José Martí, who “is sacred”.
After the issue came out, Yomil denounced that he had started receiving threats on social media, “If something happens to me, you know. I have a witness town,” he added. He also explained that the Ministry of Culture has always “underestimated and underestimated” it, even after consolidating a six-year career “with great results” and stressed: “I have always felt excluded from the cultural field of my country “.
In addition to UNEAC, criticism was also leveled at the new video, and in particular against Yomil, from the Artex page
“If they can use the image of the martyrs for their political acts and doctrine, they can manipulate history and books, but then a Cuban artist who shows it by exposing the truth of the Cuban’s reality cannot do that, that if it’s manipulating information, ”the artist reflects in another tweet.
In addition to UNEAC, criticism was also leveled at the new video, and in particular against Yomil, from the page of Artex, the official promoter and marketer of art. “Artex Cuba workers do not support the use of music to incite hatred and the use of figures from Cuban history and culture for unhealthy purposes,” they wrote.
After threats and criticism, Yomil has insisted that he will not leave Cuba or be intimidated. “For those in the Communist Party who started their attacks, I have no plans to live in Miami. I bet everything on living in my country, so I shout what Cubans on the street are asking for: freedom. So still they don’t want to accept it. “
“I’d rather risk it all for the good of all, than carry the weight on my conscience all my life,” he wrote.
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