Mi Toxica, Te Amo
This project is my documentary photography project of post-Covid period in Cuba and its implications on society. Of course, Cuba was already in a bad economic situation prior to the pandemic, mainly due to internal affairs in the revolutionary regime, and external affairs with the west, most notably the US trade embargo. Since 2020, there has been further substantial deterioration in Cuba's economy due to the Covid pandemic. The worldwide health crisis brought the country and its people to a new level of despair. They are currently facing a severe fuel crisis paralyzing many aspects of daily life in the country. Many hygiene products and other necessities are hard to find in the market. Medications are a privilege that is beyond reach of most of the Cuban citizens. The lucky ones that manage to get a job earns an average salary of 23 USD per month. A job in a hotel is considered the dream job, but right now tourism in Cuba has reached an all-time low due to Covid, so finding work in the tourism industry is almost impossible. Most of the families rely on the government's food rationing, spending almost 40 hours per week standing in line for the basic products such as bread, milk, and eggs. When the people arrive to the distribution point of any food product, they must bring with them their own plastic bags to carry the food home. A sight of multiple plastic bags washed and dried on the outer trellis of the house for re-use is a common sight in the streets of Havana, the capital.
Under these harsh conditions, many Cubans are trying to leave the country and look for better work opportunities abroad. They try to support their families that they left behind by sending money regularly. Naturally, most of those who manage to leave the country are men and women aged 20-40, who are capable of physical work. Those who are left are mainly the elders and the children, often taken care by their grandparents. As a result of these conditions, along with a rapid acceleration in demographic aging, Cuba is expected to have the highest percentage of population aged over 60 years old in Latin America in 2030. This poses a challenge to the public health of the elder generation in Cuba, as well as mental issues of loneliness and depression as a result of lack of care resources for this fragile population. This series is my attempt to scrutinize the reality of the elder generation in Cuba, with all the challenges it is facing.
