Poetry and the Enemy’s Arrows: An Interview with José Ramón Sánchez Leyva

Abstract

In this dynamic conversation, guantanamero poet José Ramón Sánchez Leyva responds to questions about his views on the U.S. naval base at Guantánamo Bay, as well as his formation as a poet and his work as editor of the Cuban literary journal La noria. Sánchez Leyva discusses his work as a battlefield that was expanded by his knowledge of events that took place within the prison that was established within the base after 9/11. He describes himself as a “guilty victim” and insists that the base, not the prison, is “the original sin.” His responses evince his powerful style as a thinker and writer as they offer detailed insights into how the base and the relationship between Cuba and the U.S. appear from the perspective of the people of Guantánamo Province.

Translated by Eduardo Rodríguez Santiago, University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico e-mail: edurodz887@gmail.com