Cuba Blackout Crisis Fuels Democracy Protests and Hopes for Freedom: 'Long Live Trump'
Cuba's crumbling power grid has plunged the island into a deepening energy and economic crisis. On Monday, a nationwide blackout thrust nearly 11 million Cubans into darkness, compounding years of hardship. After 67 years of communist rule, many Cubans are now desperate for change.
Pro-democracy protests are erupting in Cuba as the world watches on social media. In the streets, people are chanting "long live Trump" and setting fire to a Communist Party headquarters.
Cubans have reached their limit, tired of empty store shelves and homes left in the dark.
"It will be two or three days without electricity, and what little we have to eat spoils. Nobody says anything, and nobody has answers for anything," explained frustrated resident Tomás David Velázquez.
Cuba has depended on Venezuelan oil just to keep the lights on. The U.S. stopped those shipments in January, causing the power grid to fall apart. Now, blackouts are sweeping across the island.
Recently, at the Shield of the Americas summit in Doral, Florida, President Trump spoke about remarkable changes in Venezuela and added that he hopes to see the same happen in Cuba.
"They're very much at the end of the line. They have no money, they have no oil, they have a bad philosophy, they have a bad regime that's been bad for a long time," the president insisted.
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In the Oval Office on Monday, Trump shared about what might be ahead for Cuba. "Whether I free it, take it. I think I can do anything I want with it, you want to know the truth."
Cuban leader Miguel Díaz-Canel admits he's talking with the U.S., trying to find a way forward between the two countries.
While the oil embargo has pushed him to the table, Diaz-Canel still sides with America's enemies. When the Ayatollah Khamenei died, he quickly visited the Iranian embassy in Havana, signing the guest book and offering condolences to his Islamist ally.
Even though Cuba's Marxist government remains hostile to the United States, Cliff May, president of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, explained how the Venezuela model could be used in Cuba.
"Nicolas Maduro is in a jail cell in Brooklyn, New York. His number two, Delsey Rodriguez. She is running things. Is she a Marxist? Absolutely," May explained. "Is she more pliable? I think she is, because Trump has communicated to her: Look, if you're cooperating with us, that will be very helpful. If not, there probably are other jail cells I can find for you in Brooklyn, New York."
Unlike Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro, it looks like Miguel Diaz-Canel of Cuba won't be facing a jail cell anytime soon. Still, with political and economic pressures mounting, more protestors are likely to take to the streets. That could be the first step toward "Cuba Libre"—a free Cuba—in the days ahead.
About The Author
Mr. Lane served as International News Director and Senior International Correspondent for CBN News. He traveled to more than 120 countries—many of them restricted nations or areas hostile to Christianity and other minority faiths where he has interviewed persecution victims and provided video reports and analysis for CBN News. Also, he provided written stories and served as a consultant for the Voice of the Martyrs.
Gary joined The Christian Broadcasting Network in 1984 as the first full-time Middle East Correspondent for CBN News. Based in Jerusalem, Gary produced reports from Beirut on the Lebanese civil war. He was reassigned to Washington, D.C., at the start of President Reagan’s second term and served as National Security Correspondent from the U.S. State Department, Pentagon, Capitol Hill, and the White House.
Gary left CBN briefly in 1988 to work as Senior Press Secretary for Pat Robertson’s presidential campaign. Afterward, he returned to Washington and served as Washington Bureau Chief for CBN News from 1989-1992.
Gary transferred to CBN headquarters in Virginia Beach in 1996, where he began more extensive international traveling and reporting as a Senior Correspondent.
In addition to his extensive reporting on Christian persecution, Gary is also known for his reporting on the civil war in Sudan. He made 20 trips to the country since 1993 and also testified before Congress about the plight of Burmese refugees.
Gary produced numerous documentaries, including Americans Abandoned for the American Defense Institute, which afforded him the opportunity to become the first American journalist granted access to the Vietnamese Defense and Cultural Film archives. The investigative film about American POWs featured Vietnam War footage never seen before by Americans.
Gary also produced several persecution documentaries, including one about Christians in Egypt for Freedom House—Their Blood Cries Out—and another about attacks in Indonesia for The Voice of the Martyrs—Island Jihad. He also worked as a production consultant and videographer for the VOM video specials Underground Reality Vietnam and Underground Reality Colombia.
Over the years, Gary covered wars in Lebanon, Israel, Nicaragua, Angola, Burma, Sudan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia, Colombia, Libya, and Syria. He won several awards, including one from the National Gulf War Resource Center for his groundbreaking investigative reporting of Gulf War Illness, an affliction affecting veterans of Operation Desert Storm. The Australian Evangelical Press Association gave him an award for his reporting of a church massacre that occurred in Bahawalpur, Pakistan, shortly after 9-11.
Gary left CBN in 2000 to join the Voice of The Martyrs as their News Director, where he directed the mission’s multimedia efforts. Those included the website, monthly newsletter, video productions, publications, press releases, and media interviews.
Gary rejoined CBN in late 2003 as International News Director/Senior Correspondent. He served as executive producer of three weekly international news programs: Christian World News (CWN); Mundo Cristiano, a Spanish version of CWN produced in Costa Rica; and an Arabic language version of CWN, CWN Arabic, which was broadcast throughout North Africa and the Middle East. He also hosted and produced the weekly CBN News Channel program, The Global Lane.
Prior to CBN, Gary worked for various local television stations in Michigan, including one owned by Time Inc. and another by Knight-Ridder. Before that, he worked at local radio stations in Flint and Detroit.
Gary is a 1979 honors graduate of The University of Michigan, Flint, where he served as political editor of The University News, studied pre-law, and received an A.B. in political science and history.
