Cuba: Photographs by Zalmai

Photographs by ZALMAI

Over forty years after the revolution that brought Fidel Castro to power in 1959, Cuba is a country in transition, trying to preserve the gains made yet also trying to adjust to today's global realities. With a unique history and culture, Cuba is a country which few of us know about and even less understand.

I first came in contact with Cuba when I was a young boy. In the early 1980's, after the Red Army invaded my native country, Afghanistan, the Russian government instituted a cultural exchange among communist countries. As I listened to a concert by Cuban musicians, I noticed all the artists were dressed in the same uniform. I remember finding the clothing strange, as I had always thought of artists as individuals, nonconformists.

My own family chose exile over communism. Almost twenty years later, I found myself in New York, the world capital of capitalism and excess. When the opportunity to cover the 40th anniversary of the Cuban revolution arose in 1999, I seized it. While our culture is very different, both Cuba and Afghanistan have been affected by socialism. I was curious to see how this country had survived under socialist rule.

What is the country like? What are it's people like? How is it's culture both similar to and different from other Caribbean countries? How did its past determine it's present? How will the present mold it's future?

These were the questions I wanted answers to.

What I discovered was people with spirit. Living mostly in poverty, they struggle each day to survive. I found Cubans to be an educated and compassionate people. Having lived six months in the inhumane city of New York, I was delighted to find a sense of community and kinship. Cubans help their neighbors.

With a socialist system that does not work, Cuba now faces many daunting challenges as it tries to move into the 21st century. So far, Cuba has not followed the example of Russia, which opened its doors to capitalism only to fall from socialist grace and orderliness into lawlessness and corruption. With Cuba in transition, it will be interesting to see how the country faces the realities of the new world economic order while still preserving its' culture.

Zalmai Ahad

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Over forty years after the revolution that brought Fidel Castro to power in 1959, Cuba is a country in transition, trying to preserve the gains made yet also trying to adjust to today's global realities. With a unique history and culture, Cuba is a country which few of us know about and even less understand. I first came in contact with Cuba when I was a young boy. In the early 1980's, after the Red Army invaded my native country, Afghanistan, the Russian government instituted a cultural exchange among communist countries. As I listened to a concert by Cuban musicians, I noticed all the artists were dressed in the same uniform. I remember finding the clothing strange, as I had always thought of artists as individuals, nonconformists. My own family chose exile over communism. Almost twenty years later, I found myself in New York, the world capital of capitalism and excess. When the opportunity to cover the 40th anniversary of the Cuban revolution arose in 1999, I seized it. While our culture is very different, both Cuba and Afghanistan have been affected by socialism. I was curious to see how this country had survived under socialist rule. What is the country like? What are it's people like? How is it's culture both similar to and different from other Caribbean countries? How did its past determine it's present? How will the present mold it's future? These were the questions I wanted answers to. What I discovered was people with spirit. Living mostly in poverty, they struggle each day to survive. I found Cubans to be an educated and compassionate people. Having lived six months in the inhumane city of New York, I was delighted to find a sense of community and kinship. Cubans help their neighbors. With a socialist system that does not work, Cuba now faces many daunting challenges as it tries to move into the 21st century. So far, Cuba has not followed the example of Russia, which opened its doors to capitalism only to fall from socialist grace and orderliness into lawlessness and corruption. With Cuba in transition, it will be interesting to see how the country faces the realities of the new world economic order while still preserving its' culture. Zalmai Ahad
	The Photographs	About the Photographer
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