30th anniversary of the founding of the José Martí Cultural Society celebrated in Havana

On Cuban Culture Day, the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba and President of the Republic, Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, led the celebrations for the 30th Anniversary of the founding of the José Martí Cultural Society. Comrade Eduardo Moisés Torres Cuevas was posthumously honored with the Félix Varela Order of the First Degree by Presidential Decree.

Images via Estudios Revolución

By René Tamayo León, translated from the Spanish

During the Day of Cuban Culture, Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Party and President of the Republic, presided over the celebrations marking the 30th Anniversary of the José Martí Cultural Society. This society was established on October 20, 1995, by Armando Hart Dávalos, Cintio Vitier, Eusebio Leal, Roberto Fernández Retamar, Carlos Martí Brenes, and Enrique Ubieta Gómez, commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Apostle's fall in combat.

This was the nucleus of a group of leading intellectuals dedicated to studying, promoting, and teaching Martí's work. This project was backed by Commander in Chief Fidel Castro Ruz and Army General Raúl Castro Ruz, as was noted during the commemoration held Monday afternoon at the José Martí Memorial.

The celebration was also among the activities marking the Centennial of the Historical Leader of the Cuban Revolution, as well as paying tribute to Armando Hart Dávalos on his 95th birth anniversary and honoring the late intellectual Eduardo Torres Cuevas.

The event was attended by Roberto Morales Ojeda, a member of the Political Bureau and Secretary of Organization of the Central Committee of the Party; Yuniaski Crespo Baquero, a member of the Central Committee and head of its Ideological Department; Deputy Prime Minister Inés María Chapman Wauhg; and Minister of Culture Alpidio Alonso Grau. Other leaders from the Party, the Government, the UJC, the UNEAC, the AHS, and the National Union of Culture were also present, accompanying members of the José Martí Cultural Society (SCJM) along with provincial and municipal affiliates.

Víctor Hernández Torres, vice president of the Society, remembered the establishment of the SCJM on October 20, 1995, during the colossal economic and ideological struggle of the Special Period. This was a concrete action in response to Fidel's appeal that emphasized that culture was the first thing that needed to be preserved.

In an account of the Society's work, Hernández Torres highlighted its role in educating the Cuban people about Martí, particularly the younger generations, and emphasized its importance in defending the Cuban Revolution.

The speaker emphasized that the José Martí Cultural Society has served as one of the ideological pillars of our Revolution, as Armando Hart would describe it. The speaker noted that from the original group founded by those Martí intellectuals, branches have now been established in all municipalities, schools, factories, work, and research centers, with membership currently exceeding 20,000.

POSTHUMOUS TRIBUTE TO TORRES CUEVAS

During the 30th anniversary celebration of the SCJM, comrade Eduardo Moisés Torres Cuevas was honored with the Félix Varela Order of the First Degree by Presidential Decree. The tribute highlighted him as "a great Martí and above all revolutionary intellectual." His widow, Patricia González Díaz, accepted the award from the hands of President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez.

The Distinction for National Culture was also conferred on Rafael Polanco Brahojos, vice president of the SCJM and director of Honda Magazine. The award was presented by the Minister of Culture, Alpidio Alonso Grau.

The 30th Anniversary Commemorative Stamp of the José Martí Cultural Society was awarded to the intellectuals Abel Prieto Jiménez, Enrique Ubieta Gómez and Graciela Rodríguez Pérez (Chela), a close collaborator of Armando Hart Dávalos for many years.

Between October 20 and December 7, the commemorative stamp will be awarded to multiple Cuban figures for their efforts, across provinces and municipalities nationwide, in promoting and teaching Martí's work.

At the conclusion of an event predominantly featuring Cuban music and poetry, Deputy Minister of Culture Lizette Martínez Luzardo commended the SCJM's contribution to the teaching of Martí's work both in Cuba and globally.

A work that has been, she said, an expression of the fact that culture is essential for the resistance of our people and that, she pointed out, these are times in which it is crucial to return again and again to Martí and Fidel, to everything that reminds us of who we are and where we come from.

This work was translated and shared via a License CC-BY-NC