HAVANA TIMES – One of the deepest and longest-lasting crises in Cuba’s history was the so-called “Special Period.” Many wonder why it was called “special” when it was the most brutal period experienced after the triumph of the 1959 revolution. This occurred approximately between 1990 and 1994. It is a dreadful memory for all those who survived it, except for high-ranking military officers, leaders, and those who had the ability to engage in private businesses, many of which were prohibited until that time. Even so, some of them must have taken quite a hit during that culmination of misfortunes, because the ever-present crisis had become extremely severe.
But it is still possible to remember that money was circulating, and a lot of it. I can even clearly recall, as if it were today, a comment made by a man who was in the same car as me: “If you kicked a stone, you’d find money under it.” The challenge was that there was nothing to buy.
There was a shortage of everything. And we’re talking about what is understood as everything. Food, clothing, shoes, hygiene products, toys, school supplies, office resources, fuel. Restaurants were closed, stores displayed their mannequins with nothing to show, their windows full of colorful paper decorations in the shapes of triangles and circles, signaling they had nothing to offer. It was truly a disastrous time.
The current cris
