On March 21, 2026 I received a WhatsApp text from a close friend of mine that immediately arrested my attention. The text was entitled, ‘Open Letter to the World: From Cuba an Ordinary Woman Denounces the Crime They Refuse to See’. The author of the text described herself as an ordinary Cuban woman. Her motive for writing the text is to expose the oppression that is being calculated and coldly executed from Washington against the people of Cuba.

From the outset, let me state that Cuba, like all other nations around the globe, has its own fair share of problems. Cuba’s authoritarian regime has been condemned for human rights violations and excesses against its population. Critics of the Government have a way of disappearing into the penal system for inordinately long periods of time. Opponents of the regime are reportedly arrested, detained, beaten up, surveilled, exiled, shamed, and harassed.

With that out of the way, I can proceed to the more ethical and moral issue at hand. The author of the aforementioned text presents coercive evidence to drive home her damning accusation of State-sponsored oppression being committed by the American Government. She paints an unsettling picture of the grim effects being suffered by the most vulnerable in Cuba, courtesy of the medieval-style siege of Cuba by the American military.

In addition to all the other sanctions imposed on Cuba by the US, the Donald Trump Administration has imposed an oil blockade on the island and announced new tariffs on countries supplying oil to Cuba. With Venezuela, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, and Mexico firmly under the boot of the US hegemon, Cuba is forced to rely on Russian shipments of oil to the island. With its threats of draconian new tariffs on nations providing oil relief to Cuba, the ‘bad-minded’ Americans have embarked on campaigns of interdiction against international shipping en route to Cuba.

The Trump Administration has effectively created a severe energy crisis in Cuba. Daily life for ordinary Cubans is being totally devastated by a lack of electricity, clean water, food, and fuel. Already, there have been several nationwide blackouts, plunging the island into darkness and severely curtailing essential life-preserving services. Limited fuel means that food cannot be transported adequately, leading to shortages and high prices. Unreliable refrigeration only compounds the problem as food spoilage increases.

Cuba, an island known for its world-class health-care services, is currently restricted in its ability to deliver this world-class health care to its own citizens. Hospitals have been forced to operate on generators and some have had no choice but to cancel numerous life-saving surgeries. Hundreds of thousands of Cuban lives have been placed on a macabre alter of sacrifice set up by Washington.

The health sector in Cuba is being further degraded by the breakdown in sanitation services, compliments of the Americans’ artificially orchestrated fuel crisis. As garbage piles up in Havana and other cities, the potential for the spread of harmful pathogens increases. Garbage is an effective breeding ground for disease-producing vectors, inclusive of rodents, flies, cockroaches, and mosquitoes. Should this blockade persist, Cuba could witness an upsurge in diseases — like cholera, diarrhoea, typhoid fever, hepatitis A, malaria, leptospirosis, and dengue fever.

A 2025 study published by The Lancet Global Health suggest that US sanctions could be the root cause of over 500,000 deaths annually. According to the study, sanctions kill by blocking access to international trade, medical supplies, and food imports. Sanctions also kill by disrupting water distribution and sanitation services. The study suggested that between 1970 and 2021, sanctions are implicated in the death of over 25 million people globally, making sanctions way more deadly than actual open warfare.

The widespread imposition of sanctions by the US and its allies on smaller, weaker nations coupled with the known deadly consequences suggest that imperialists have found a more updated method of accomplishing its game plan. The decimation of the goyim is still the favourite pastime of the lords and masters of the universe. The game was played out in the new world when the Europeans came to town. It was played out in the Caribbean and on the African continent. Indians, Iraqis, Libyans, Venezuelans, Iranians, and Cubans have a dark tale to tell about the machine of the empire.

The ongoing war in the Middle East, which is fast gaining the moniker of World War III, potentially carries within it the seeds of destruction for both the targets of the empire and for the empire itself. Just as relief came to African and Caribbean nations in the aftermath of World War II, there is a distinct possibility that the economic life support that is keeping the empire afloat may be disintegrating. Iran is literally threatening to pull the plug on the system of global financing which serves as an incubator for the military exploits of the empire.

The longer the war in West Asia persists, the more likely it is that Iran will fast-track an apocalypse on the Gulf States, which deserve all the punishment they are getting. It is quite possible that President Trump’s latest tack is simply a delaying tactic to give the British and all the other allies of the US sufficient time to arrive and set up a defensive perimeter around the Gulf States.

Iran could do the people of Cuba, the Palestinians, and all oppressed people of the world a great service by collapsing the global financial system. The destruction of the oil and gas infrastructure in the Gulf States by Iran would push the price of gas and oil through the roof. Some analysts are suggesting that the price of oil could exceed US$200 a barrel. The ensuing global recession would no doubt hurt all nations, but at least it would give citizens of the empire a taste of the bitter medicine administered by their leaders.

The destruction of the gas and oil infrastructure of the Gulf States would also provide the BRICS nations with a window of opportunity to consolidate a viable alternative to the current Caucasian-led economic order. The US would finally be forced to deal with its own internal problems or face the wrath of a population that is simmering in anger and discontent. Europeans would have to become a lot nicer to get resources from Africa and the Caribbean, especially if a majority of African and Caribbean nations throw the weight of their support behind the new BRICS structure.

The Bretton Woods Order has come to an end and the empire has entered the final stage of its lifecycle. The empire can still inflict a lot of pain, as is evident by the horrendous suffering currently being endured by the Cuban people.

Most Caricom governments and people are standing in solidarity with the Government and people of Cuba. This should be a no-brainer for Caricom considering all the help Cuba has rendered to our region.

The humanitarian aid being offered by Caricom to Cuba is commendable, especially since it is accompanied by the risk of economic and even military reprisals from the Trump Administration. We can only hope, therefore, that the empire is forced to beat a frantic retreat from both Iran and Cuba.

Lenrod Nzulu Baraka is the founder of Afro-Caribbean Spiritual Teaching Center and the author of At Hell’s Gate: The Catholic and Evangelical Takeover of America. Send comments to the Jamaica Observer or rodneynimrod2@gmail.com.

Lenrod N Baraka

Garbage continues to pile up in Cuba as the US’s oil blockade has affected a range of government services, including waste collection. (Photo: AFP)

Cubans have resorted to cooking on wood fire as the energy crisis persists. (Photo: AFP)