Residents of Havana took to the streets of several neighborhoods in the capital city on Tuesday night for the second day in a row to protest against the communist Castro regime amid a new, over 30-hour-long blackout.
Over the past two days, Cubans living in Havana have been enduring yet another over 30-hour-long blackout as the ailing communist regime finds itself unable to consistently provide power to the Cuban capital city. Cuban-focused outlets reported that residents of the Havana neighborhoods of Bahía, Marianao, Diez de Octubre, Nuevo Vedado, Luyanó, and others banged pots, set up campfires, and burned piles of trash that the ailing ruling regime has failed to properly dispose of during Tuesday night’s protests.
Cuban dissidents with internet access successfully managed to publish footage of the protests on social media and share it with outlets. Cubanet published footage of a cacerolazo (“pot-banging”) protest in Diez de Octubre — a neighborhood described by the outlet as a location that has become a central spot for peaceful protests against the Castro regime in recent months. In another piece of footage, shared by Cuban dissident Eliécer Ávila and published by Cubanet, shows fires burning along the side of a road while dozens of people protest during the blackout.
Cuban activist Orlando Ramírez spoke with Martí Noticias on Tuesday and described the situation as “chaotic.” Ramírez resides in Santo Suárez, a neighborhood that lost power on Monday afternoon and only had power for a brief 14-minute period before it went out again. His area also lacks running water, as there is not enough pressure to pump water through the pipelines of his neighborhood and, without power, no one can operate any pumps to move water upwards into tanks. Having access to fuel-powered generators is no guarantee to overcome the blackout, Ramírez pointed out, as generators are not suited to provide power to the old refrigerators that are commonplace in Cuba — in addition to soaring fuel costs across the island, which make running generators an expensive endeavor.
Tuesday’s protests are the latest in a growing series of acts of defiance against the Castro regime that have taken place throughout the first months of 2026. While there have been no reports of the acts of regime repression against Tuesday’s protests, the Cuban regime has brutally repressed past protests, forcing citizens to stay at home. Among those arrested is a 16-year-old boy for “protesting” against communism, dismissing any concerns over the teenager’s health, as he suffers from serious skin conditions that require special medical attention and treatments.
Cuban journalist Magdiel Jorge Castro reported that messages and insults against Cuba’s figurehead “President” Miguel Díaz-Canel appeared in the streets of Arroyo Naranjo on Wednesday morning — including “Patria y Vida” (“Homeland and Life”) a slogan that has become a mainstay in the protests against the Cuban regime.
The excruciatingly long blackouts are a consequence of the regime’s disastrous communist mismanagement of Cuba during the 67 years that it has been in power. The complete lack of maintenance of the nation’s power grid has left it in a barely functional state.
During his second term in office, President Donald Trump has emphatically reiterated that America would no longer tolerate the actions of the repressive Cuban regime and intensified pressure against it. Last week, the administration announced sanctions on GAESA, a conglomerate run by the Cuban military that controls as much as 40 percent of Cuba’s economy through its multiple subsidiaries and branches. The new sanctions have already prompted several international companies to evaluate the risks of continuing businesses in Cuba. In February, President Trump said he was considering a “friendly takeover” of Cuba. Weeks later, the Cuban regime admitted that it had been engaging in talks with the United States.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, President Trump said Cuba is “not doing well,” is a failed nation, and “we’ll be talking about Cuba at the right time.” Similarly, in a Truth Social post published hours before departing to China, President Trump said that no Republican has ever spoken to him about Cuba, “which is a failed country and only heading in one direction — down!”
“Cuba is asking for help, and we are going to talk!!! In the meantime, I’m off to China! President DJT,” President Trump wrote.
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