Single Mother in Dire Need: Cuban Woman Seeks Aid for Struggling Family

A Cuban woman has turned to social media to seek assistance for a young single mother and her one-year-old baby, who are living in extreme poverty and in desperate need of household items and resources to make their home more livable.

Identified on Facebook as Yuliet Gómez, the user described the dire situation of the young mother, Yudisleidi, and her child, who reside in the community of San Germán, Urbano Noris municipality, in the province of Holguín.

“I urgently ask for the help of anyone whose heart is touched by these images and who wishes to contribute anything they can. Nothing new is being asked for; second-hand items are welcome. This is a friend of mine from San Germán who lives alone in a small, humble home with her baby, who is just one year old. She is 24 years old,” the Cuban woman shared in her post.

Accompanied by images of the young mother’s home, the plea for help detailed the living conditions of Yudisleidi and her child. The house, made of wooden planks, metal sheets, asbestos tiles, and patched with various materials, is barely habitable for an adult, let alone for raising a small child.

“At first glance, you can see her little house, which gets wet inside when it rains. She doesn’t have a stove. That’s her little bathroom. She lives behind the nursing home. Many people know her; her name is Yudisleidi,” her friend explained.

The needs of the mother and her child range from food, clothing, household items, and toys to anything that could improve the poor conditions of their home.

In this regard, Yuliet offered to act as an intermediary for assistance and provided her phone number for interested individuals to contact her (63747643), noting that she can offer more information via WhatsApp, where she can also give Yudisleidi’s contact number for those who wish to speak directly with the young mother.

She also requested that her social media post be shared to reach more people with the plea for help.

Widespread Poverty and Inequality in Cuba

Extreme poverty and inequality are spreading throughout Cuba as Miguel Díaz-Canel’s government continues to implement policies that exacerbate the situation and increase societal inequality.

Faced with the government’s inability or unwillingness to find solutions, Cubans are increasingly turning to social media to seek help or organize donations for the less fortunate.

In early June, Cuban activists launched a call for aid for children living in extreme poverty in the Sierra Maestra and other remote areas of Santiago de Cuba.

Yankiel Fernández, coordinator of the Aliento de Vida Humanitarian Project, appealed on social media for donations for children and other residents in these communities who lack basic necessities like food, clothing, and medicine.

In mid-April, a group of Cubans delivered food to vulnerable elderly people in Havana amid a context of scarcity and inflation that is pushing thousands to the brink of destitution on the island.

Fernández also took action, announcing on Facebook that, with the help of donors from both inside and outside the island, they were able to purchase food for some elderly people in dire need.

At the end of March, a couple of elderly people living in extreme poverty in Holguín received assistance from several Cubans.

Activist Norge Ernesto Díaz Blak (Noly Blak) learned about this social case and, upon interviewing the elderly woman for the first time, she confessed that she was dizzy from hunger.

Díaz visited their home and discovered that the elderly couple was living in extreme poverty and set out to help them with the collaboration of other people.

He raised money and resources, and others contributed their time to improve the living conditions of these elderly people, who reside in Escondida, a rural village 90 kilometers from Holguín.