In the Miami Herald, NED President and CEO Damon Wilson and NED Board member, former Senator Mel Martinez, make the case for restoring U.S. support to defend free speech and independent voices in Cuba. Read their op-ed below:
The Cuban dictatorship just 90 miles from Florida has spent more than six decades oppressing and silencing its people to survive. Its grip on power depends on controlling information and ensuring that Cubans can’t think critically, speak freely or organize without fear.
That’s why supporting Cuba’s independent journalists and democracy activists is not just a moral imperative. It’s a strategic investment in a freer Cuba, a more secure Western Hemisphere and a safer United States.
Today, that investment is at risk. The U.S. has long supported Cuban democracy efforts through the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), a congressionally mandated private foundation. But State Department funds for this work are being paused as the administration reassesses its priorities. These initiatives help Cubans push back against authoritarian control and build a democratic future.
There is bipartisan recognition that a free, democratic Cuba aligns with long-term U.S. interests of a more stable, prosperous region. That’s why restoring NED’s support for Cuba’s independent voices is critical. They need our backing now more than ever — when the regime is at its weakest.
Cuba’s economic collapse is accelerating. Inflation exceeds 500%. Public services have crumbled. Over 400,000 Cubans have fled in two years — reshaping South Florida communities and overwhelming the U.S. border.
As someone who fled Cuba as a child during Operation Pedro Pan, one of us, Mel Martinez, knows firsthand what it means to be silenced. My family had to choose between freedom and home. That experience shaped my conviction that no Cuban should have to leave their country just to have a voice. As a U.S. senator, I fought to support those still inside Cuba continuing the struggle I was forced to leave behind.
Today, alongside Damon Wilson, who leads NED’s mission to advance freedom worldwide, we remain committed to that fight. NED has supported independent journalists and democracy activists in Cuba for over four decades. These partners are breaking through state propaganda and dismantling the regime’s lies every day.
The impact isn’t confined to Cuba’s borders.
Despite harassment, exile and imprisonment, independent journalists persist. In 2024 alone, NED-supported media reached more than 10 million people — half of them inside Cuba. Local news bulletins, like those from the Cuban Institute for Freedom of Expression (ICLEP), hold officials accountable in real time.
NED partners like Diario de Cuba are holding the regime accountable at home and abroad. Their exposé of a former Cuban judge — who sentenced peaceful protesters and then sought asylum in the U.S. — exposed corruption within Cuba’s judiciary and pushed for justice across the Florida Straits.
Another partner, Cuba Siglo 21, uncovered how GAESA, a military-run conglomerate of former generals, serves as the regime’s economic backbone — an investigation published in the Miami Herald.
Without Cuba Siglo 21’s work, much of this information would remain buried. These investigations don’t just expose corruption — they create a ripple effect, enabling other journalists to follow the money.
Meanwhile, Cuba remains a destabilizing force across the region, exporting antidemocratic narratives through state-run institutions; and, as NED partner Directorio Democrático revealed, allowing its citizens to be recruited by Russia to fight in Ukraine.
These revelations matter. They undermine the regime’s legitimacy, galvanize international accountability and arm Cubans — and U.S. policymakers — with the truth.
This is not just a Cuban crisis. It’s a U.S. national security concern. A bankrupt dictatorship near our shores threatens regional stability, fuels mass migration, and enables authoritarian influence from Moscow to Caracas.
But this is also a moment of opportunity. The regime is morally and fiscally bankrupt and out of answers. The Cuban people are not. They are demanding change, and independent journalists and freedom fighters are helping them imagine — and build — a different future.
The U.S. must not blink now. We call on Congress, the administration and international partners to ensure continued investment in Cuba’s democracy movement.
These frontline actors need immediate, sustained resources to continue their work.
Every day without them, the regime’s stranglehold of censorship tightens.
Mel Martinez is a former U.S. senator from Florida and a NED board director. Damon Wilson is the president and CEO of NED.
This article originally appeared in the Miami Herald on April 28, 2025, and is available here.
