Miguel Iturria Savón, Translator: Unstated
Last May I was overwhelmed when browsing in the apartment of Yoani
Sanchez I came across her book Word Press: a blog to talk to the world.
Three years earlier I had noted her famous blog (Generation Y) and,
stimulated by it, I opened my blog, Island Anchor, also hosted on the
platform Cuban Voices. The connection continued with the sessions of the
Blogger Academy, occasional meetings, calls and text messages and my
collaborations in Voices magazine, created by Yoani, Reinaldo Escobar
and Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo.
The volume struck me with its compositional structure, didactic sense,
the effective selection of expository texts, the eloquence of the
illustrations and the overall coherence, both technical and casual, all
of it "so Yoani," whose human warmth cohabits with a scriptural acuity.
The pragmatism of her civic proposals, her passion for new technologies,
her citizen journalism and her commitment to what happens on the island,
always from a personal viewpoint that is no stranger to wonder and the
need to seek.
Word Press: a blog to talk to the world is a compendium of accelerated
learning from Yoani Sanchez, the curious and avid linguist, fascinated
by "the mysteries of cyberspace," and whose banner freedom of
expression. It is also a gift for beginners and an instrumental doorway,
perhaps for the methodical carpenter to test the tools that free — and
release — us from the information banality and dreams of domination of
despots, these young men who damaged the lives of millions of people and
converted the nation into a hacienda that supports them.
The work, of 463 pages, 20 chapters, 2 prologues, Editor's Note,
Glossary, Bibliography and Index, is a reference manual of educational
value, a brick of paper that outlines her own experience with her blog,
interacting with readers and the media and how this universal Cuban
woman — recognized for her talent and dedication to others — learned to
do it all. If anyone thought there were some kind of "maneuvers" around
the prizes Yoani has been awarded from outside the island they can put
that idea to rest. Yoani has succeeded because she convinces with her
writings and computer knowledge.
Written at the request of Eugenio Tuya, editor of the publishing house
Anaya, who rates the outcome as excellent and praised the clarity of
exposition and "charming amiability" of the author, the book is intended
for "all who dream of exposing their life's travels through a blog and
especially those in difficult situations who need to communicate with
the world and be encouraged to express themselves freely."
No wonder the Spaniard Esperanza Aguirre advises in his prologue that
Yoani Sanchez, "In teaching us to use the tools of information
technology, gives us an exciting lesson … about our duty to always open
new windows, whatever the difficulties, a juggernaut for freedom. "
José Luis Orihuela, author of Cuaderno.com, evokes the Internet as the
XXI century printing press and the blog Generation Y as "the
paradigmatic representation of the network as a technology for freedom
and the blog as a personal press," to which he adds that "Yoani has
extended her passion to many others inside and outside the island" and
that she and her blog "are no longer just about technology, not only
about the literature of the everyday, and have become a symbol of
peaceful resistance to oppression, in a tangible demonstration of the
power of words."
"This is a book about the tool that has made possible the Revolution of
Yoani Sánchez, Word Press, written for people like her: those who don't
know technology but have things to say, those who want to communicate
and have no other means than the most simple and powerful: a blog."
Perhaps because of this and because "the network is no longer a space
for consultation and has been converted into a space for participation
in the social environment," Yoani's book can not circulate on the
island, where it is seized by customs officials, recalling those lists
of medieval inquisitors bent on shaping thought and censoring those who
did not assume the prevailing orthodoxy.
The list of contents would be enough to stimulate the search for the
next installment from the best-known blogger in Cuba. Attractive and
suggestive titles such as: The Birth and Consecration of Word Press; The
Map to Install Word Press; The Viscera or the Administration Page;
Appearance and Design of the Blog; Learning to Live with the
Commentators; the Trolls and other Creatures of Cyberspace; Categories
and Labels; URLs and Links, Multiplatform Blogs…
Through these themes lie the road ahead and the liberating door for
those who accompany Yoani on her wanderings, real and virtual. They just
have to dare. Not surprisingly she claims that "the highest purpose of
mankind will not have to wait for someone' who will open a space where
you can show yourself. You will not need a bureaucratic permit. You will
not need to amass a fortune or have a menacing army backing you up … You
would not even need to be under the umbrella of a political party … Here
you have a window, or rather the carpenter to build it … "
July 21 2011
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