Cuba Wants You To Thk It’s a Gay Paradise. It’s Not. – Foreign Policy

Contents:

• THERE’S A GAY BEACH HAVANA! DISVERG LGBT LIFE CUBA
• CUBA GAY TRAVEL - LGBT RMATN JULY 2023
• TIPS FOR GAY AND LBIAN TRAVELERS CUBA
• CUBA WANTS YOU TO THK IT’S A GAY PARADISE. IT’S NOT.
• UNVERG GAY HAVANA, CUBA

THERE’S A GAY BEACH HAVANA! DISVERG LGBT LIFE CUBA

Cuba is a popular LGBTQ+ travel statn thanks to s rich history and culture, unspoiled nature, and y, vibrant gay life – pecially pared to other islands the Caribbean. While the pri paras were stopped 2019, the ernment sanctned the openg of the untry’s first gay hotel, the Gran Muthu Rabow Hotel and there has been discsn of regnizg the rights of same-sex upl. You’ll fd a visible queer scene Havana: the Vedado neighborhood, along the Malacón at Mi Cayo beach, which is popular wh gay men, and bars and clubs that reflect a more nocent, pre-Grdr time.

X Y (formerly Bar Myxto) is one of our favore Cubano gay bars and Café Cantante Mi Habana, a club near Havana’s Revolutnary Square, hosts live mic. Instead, this sectn was removed entirely – neher prohibg nor promotg same sex unns – a move which is seen as posive by gay mpaign groups. Workplace discrimatn on the basis of homosexualy is illegal, but Cuba’s anti discrimatn laws do not extend to other areas of society, such as hog or tn.

CUBA GAY TRAVEL - LGBT RMATN JULY 2023

What’s more, homosexualy was viewed some circl as an example of palist nce – or ‘iologil diversnism’ to e the phrase ed by Raúl Castro – that perpetuated ‘bourgeois’ valu unpalatable the new, Communist Cuba. Along wh the many visg servicemen and sailors, the tourists created a thrivg market – straight and gay – for prostut. A handful of gay bars existed at this time, but prostutn would have been one of the most visible forms of homosexualy, and as the brothels, bars and sos that promoted were largely ntrolled by US-based crimals, sex workers, gamblg and anised crime were extribly entwed.

Castro once referred to gay men as "agents of imperialism"; this may, ironilly, have turned to a self-fulfillg prophecy. One of the most horrific featur of this perd were the so-lled ‘rehabilatn mps’ – effectively forced labour mps which were set up to ‘rrect’ any form of ‘viance’, and while this wasn’t exclively limed to LGBT people, the mps were known to target gay men as officials unleashed their homophobia on them. Towards the end of the 1970s attus towards the LGBT muny began to soften, and homosexualy was crimalised 1979.

TIPS FOR GAY AND LBIAN TRAVELERS CUBA

In 1988 Fil Castro himself publicly cricised the untry’s homophobic past, and the police were orred not to harass LGBT people. It wasn’t until 2010, however, that Castro fally took full rponsibily for the labour mps and their persecutn of homosexuals.

Yet jt as WiFi hotspots are poppg up on street rners and flat screen TVs n be glimpsed through the wdows of fay hom, so too are gay bars begng to open up, and same sex upl may be seen walkg hand hand down the street. In Havana particular, there is a growg gay scene; one nsequence of Cuba’s limed ter accs (read: datg apps), which means that face to face enunters are still very much the norm when to meetg partners of any orientatn. You may well see gay upl the street, as well as transgenr people, thanks to the availabily of reassignment surgery (and of Cuba’s famoly excellent healthre service), and transvt – all acceleratg the ‘normalisatn’ of LGBT culture Cuban society.

Ined, while the untry celebrat the WHO’s Internatnal Day Agast Homophobia (IDAHO) each year wh two weeks of paras, lectur, plays, exhibns and ncerts, do so only through official events – anised by the ernment, of urse. A report by the publitn Foreign Policy quot a gay Cuban who claims “We live unr nstant ernment surveillance and harassment, while at the same time beg manipulated for... While LGBT Cubans are still tiptoeg around the island’s plex relatnship wh homosexualy, LGBT tourists here should not experience discrimatn or harassment.

CUBA WANTS YOU TO THK IT’S A GAY PARADISE. IT’S NOT.

Some sas are owned by gay upl; if your holiday pany knows any and n book you , this n provi a fascatg sight to lol LGBT life as well as supportg people who have tradnally suffered om discrimatn. Havana’s gay scene foc on the culture-heavy Vedado neighbourhood, as well as along the Malen; the area around Avenida 23 known as La Rampa is a particular hangout, wh several gay iendly bars and diss. Mi Cayo beach, a short drive north of Havana, is known as the ‘gay beach’ – ial for same sex upl who are worried about feelg unfortable elsewhere.

Special LGBT partur will vis gay bars and Mi Cayo, but also take you to vis CENESEX and have dner at a rtrant featured a well known gay Cuban film, Fra y Cholate (see below). This memorat 17 May 1990 when the World Health Organizatn removed homosexualy om s list of mental health disorrs.

UNVERG GAY HAVANA, CUBA

Most famo is Before Night Falls, an tobgraphil acunt of the gay Cuban wrer Realdo Arenas who was imprisoned Cuba before pg to the USA. It’s a fictnal acunt of a group of iends who explore their gay and straight inti, and discs the meangs of munism and the revolutn.

Costa Ri's liberal mdset, growg gay muny and superb nature mean that LGBT holidays are one of the fastt growg sectors of s travel dtry. Jamai has been scribed as the most homophobic untry the world, thanks to s btal, archaic laws and cultural attus towards the LGBT muny. Japan has a long history of openns towards homosexualy, revealed through s arts and even s relign, up to s morn day gay districts and huge Pri events.

Majory Mlim Malaysia is one of the more nservative untri Southeast Asia, and that is reflected s gay scene, which is nowhere near as open as that Thailand or Vietnam. Thailand may be known as the gay pal of Asia, but Vietnam is at the foreont too, wh a more progrsive approach than many of s neighbours.

We've published guis to the least gay iendly untri bee we believe everyone should be ee to track gorillas or ri the Trans Siberian Railway, regardls of their sexualy.

My iend and I had arrived at Mi Cayo beach Cuba, a stretch of shorele 15 east of Havana, search of gay Cuba travel experienc. It looked as though the beach extend que a distance both directns, so we were unsure where to fd the gay sectn of beach that supposedly existed. Our hope that the du would lead to the gay beach were realized when, after five mut of walkg wt, we spotted the rabow flag.

On this weekday afternoon, the gay beach had maybe 100 people at most, but was still awome to see signs of gay life Cuba, where acceptance of gays is growg but still not nearly at the same level as most wtern natns. There ed to be a Cuban gay bar lled Humboldt 52, but that place appears to have been closed for many years now. Asi om Cabaret Las Vegas, if you’re lookg for the LGBT+ populatn Cuba, you’ll mostly have to e mon sense and gaydar.

The are stereotyp, of urse, but they did hold te for many young Cuban gays, who were clearly open and weren’t tryg to hi their orientatns om anybody.