La estrella indiscutible: Juanes

Photos by Pedro F. Báez

Nace Dante, el tercer hijo de Juanes

A una semana del Concierto por la Paz que ha de celebrarse en La Habana, centralizado por el cantante colombiano Juanes, nace su tercer hijo en la ciudad de Miami, de nombre Dante.

Felicidades a Juanes, a su esposa Karen y a toda la familia.

BEST OF LUCK, JUAN ESTEBAN!

For the historically challenged

Plaza de la Revolución, the place so reviled and maligned by Cuban extremists for being the chosen site for the upcoming Juanes's Concierto por la Paz in Havana on September 20 was originally named Plaza Cívica and was finally commissioned, funded and built by none other than Fulgencio Batista himself -after many failed previous attempts- and inaugurated in 1959, just a few months after Castro's revolution, hence the name change.

Contrary to general belief among Cubans (especially exiles), Castro had nothing to do with the project and being one of the largest public squares in the world (72 000 square meters; approximately 216 000 square feet) and its tower the highest man-made structure in Havana (109 meters; 358 feet) it is actually a triumphant symbol of Cuban pre-revolutionary capitalist architecture, enterprise and achievement.

These performers may join Juanes on stage in Havana

Miguel Bosé

Olga Tañón

Amaury Pérez-Vidal

Orquesta Los Van-Van

Silvio Rodríguez

Juanes: The Great Humanitarian

It would be heartening to see a list of all the charity, community work and 'good deeds' undertaken and achieved by the loonies of Vigilia Mambisa and all the other extremist Miami-based Cuban 'organizations'...

Juanes record as an honestly concerned and active humanitarian speaks for itself. Just ask the Colombian government and the Colombian people, other governments in Latin America, the United Nations and the European Parliament.

JUANES: TALENT, RESOLVE AND GOOD LOOKS

Ignorance, ridiculousness and vulgarity have no boundaries

Especially when it comes to the absurd accusations and demands of the lunatic members of Vigilia Mambisa, a very small but media savvy and vociferous ultra-right-wing group of Cuban exiles in Miami that paradoxically use Castro-style smear, disinformation and intimidation techniques to advance their 'cause' while casting an unfairly shameful and poor image on the vastly hard-working and open minded Cuban community living in the United States.

Maybe they are in reality the pro-Castro infiltrados they so vehemently claim to see everywhere over so many years of wasteful, useless and nonsensical pseudo-political activity.

Thankfully, none of these clowns will ever have any real relevance in Miami or in the political and social structure of a future free Cuba. In the meantime and to my chagrin, continue to watch the freak show from Miami...

I just feel very sorry for Juanes and his expecting wife Karen. I hope he knows that most decent, politically moderate Cubans are rooting for him and for the successful realization of his concert in Havana, even if publicly they do not dare to say so.

The people in Cuba deserve a musical and political break and Juanes deserves a big THANK YOU for having the willingness and the cojones to do what needs to be done in spite of Cuban government pressure and of the loonies of Vigilia Mambisa and other hate-mongering 'organizations' of the same style .

Perhaps music, the good will and solidarity of the human spirit will transcend ideological, political and cultural barriers and indeed bring about change; setting the pylons to extend the bridges that diplomacy, isolation, hate and resentment have failed to build all these years...

Juanes in Havana September 20, why not?