"In Cuba, "la cosa" speaks louder than words. That single phrase carries the weight of daily struggle, coded truths and the country's unspoken realities. LEILA FADEL, HOST: In Cuba, expressing opinions in public can get you in trouble. But for Cubans trying to tell you what they really think, there's a single phrase that does a lot of work and carries coded truths."
"PERALTA: Marisleysis (ph) sizes me up, and she takes a leap. MARISLEYSIS: (Non-English language spoken). PERALTA: "My love. The thing is very bad," she says. Her friend stops her. She's saying too much in front of a microphone. But Marisleysis dismisses her because that's the thing about the thing. The thing can be anything. MARISLEYSIS: (Non-English language spoken). PERALTA: The thing is our food, our sustenance, our clothes."
Many Cubans rely on the phrase 'la cosa' as a polyvalent expression that masks direct criticism and conveys daily hardships. The phrase can refer to food, sustenance, clothing, prices, or the general situation. Speakers use it to signal scarcity and expense without naming specifics that could draw political attention. Public expression carries risks in Cuba; those who overtly oppose the revolution have faced jail. People sometimes give only first names to avoid repercussions. Everyday conversations deploy coded language and cautious phrasing, and listeners infer fuller meaning from context to navigate the boundaries of permissible speech.
Read at www.npr.org
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