🗓️ July 15, 2025 will be remembered not just for an insensitive remark, but for what it revealed about the widening gap between policy and people.

In a moment that shocked both local citizens and international observers, Cuba’s Minister of Labor and Social Security, Marta Elena Feitó Cabrera, stood before the National Assembly and boldly claimed:

“There are no beggars in Cuba. Those people you see cleaning windshields or digging through garbage? They’re disguised. They’ve chosen an easy life.”

The statement spread like wildfire.
Within 48 hours, she submitted her resignation.
Even Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel condemned the tone, reminding the country that “The revolution cannot leave anyone behind.”
But for many Cubans, especially the elderly surviving on pensions of just $5/month, the damage had already been done.

📉 Poverty Hidden in Plain Sight

Cuba’s economy has been in steep decline, contracting by 1.1% in 2024,  and 11% over the last five years. Once lauded for its strong safety net, the country now grapples with visible poverty.
Seniors rummage through trash cans. Some sell recyclables.
Others clean windshields just to survive. And yet, according to the now-former minister, these aren’t signs of desperation; they’re signs of disguise.

“Look at their hands,” she said. “Their clothes. These are not beggars.”

But numbers don’t lie.

A pension of 2,000 pesos  about $5 doesn’t cover basic food needs. A carton of eggs alone costs nearly that much on the informal market.

So what happens when leaders deny what the people experience every day?

⚖️ From Disconnection to Consequence

The backlash was swift:

• Memes compared Feitó to Marie Antoinette, echoing “let them eat cake.”
• Economists and influencers spoke out, calling her words an erasure of Cuba’s poor.
• Reddit threads exploded, with Cubans and diaspora communities sharing raw stories of struggle and resilience.

It wasn’t just about one quote; it was about being seen, heard, and acknowledged.

“They are elderly people who count on a pension that does not exist,” said local entrepreneur Enrique Guillén.
“They cannot even buy a carton of eggs. It is the reality we are living in Cuba.”

Poverty is not just about lack; it’s about loss. Loss of dignity. Loss of choice. When a society no longer guarantees food security for its elders, the crisis is not just economic; it’s moral. What Feitó’s remarks revealed was not just disconnect but a deeper disassociation from the sacredness of human struggle. To call hunger a disguise is to call pain performative. But there is no performance in survival. There is only the quiet desperation of those who do what they must to make it through another day. Language is a currency. What leaders say trickles down into how systems respond.

A single careless phrase  like “they’re disguised beggars”  has the power to devalue real human hardship. It may appear as just political tone-deafness on the surface, but underneath it erodes trust, delays reform, and reinforces harmful beliefs. When we look at policies that ignore the poor, we must also trace the origin: often, it begins with a narrative that decided their suffering didn’t exist.

Cuba’s Social Shift: From Revolution to Reckoning

Cuba has long prided itself on revolutionary ideals, universal literacy, free education, and basic health care. But ideals cannot feed a family. And as economic support systems crumble, the weight of unmet promises grows heavier. What once was a badge of pride now feels like a broken contract. For the elderly who lived through decades of sacrifice for “a better future,” today’s reality stings. The revolution raised them, but the economy has left them standing in food lines, invisible, unheard, and betrayed.

💡 Leadership Lessons: What This Means Beyond Cuba

This isn’t just a Cuban issue.

It’s a cautionary tale for leaders  from politicians to financial coaches to CEOs. In moments of crisis:

• Words must be chosen with care.
• Policies must reflect lived reality.
• Denial destroys trust.

The Psychology of Denial in Leadership

There’s a comfort in denial for those in power. Admitting widespread poverty means accepting that the systems you uphold are failing. For a leader, that’s not just a political risk — it’s an identity fracture. But true leadership requires that rupture. It demands confronting the ugly truths, even when the mirror cracks. Feitó’s failure wasn’t just her words. It was the refusal to see what millions already knew. When leadership gaslights reality, the people lose twice: once in life, and again in memory.

Whether you’re leading a nation or building a brand, the cost of ignoring pain is always higher than the cost of empathy.

 What the Credit Wealth Team Audience Can Learn

At Credit Wealth Team, we don’t just talk credit scores and lending options we talk financial dignity.

This story reminds us:

• Don’t overlook the struggles behind someone’s surface.
• Build systems that actually serve people, not just look good on paper.
• Speak with compassion, even in hard financial truths.

And if you’re in the business of offering credit repair, personal finance coaching, or wealth education, remember: people need help, not judgment.

 Who Are We Leaving Behind?

This isn’t just Cuba’s lesson. It’s the world’s. Every nation has its own blind spots, its own marginalized voices. The real question isn’t whether beggars exist. It’s whether we’re willing to see them. In our neighborhoods. In our policies. In our analytics and spreadsheets. Behind every statistic is a soul. Behind every misquote, a missed opportunity to extend compassion. If we fail to see the unseen, we, too, are pretending.

Let this post be more than commentary.
Let it be a mirror.
Are we listening to the needs of the most vulnerable?
Are we offering solutions that heal or ones that dismiss?

💬 We invite you to join our free newsletter, where we break down real-world finance stories into lessons that help you protect and grow your wealth  with empathy at the core.

📚 Sources

• Associated Press. (2025, July 15). Cuban labor minister resigns after her suggestion beggars were pretending sparked backlash. AP News. https://apnews.com/article/ebd9931e3f7929701bdf70045c2f6cba

• Reuters. (2025, July 16). Cuba fires minister who said beggars were all fakes. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/cuban-minister-under-pressure-saying-country-has-no-beggars-2025-07-15

• The Times. (2025, July 16). Cuban minister: We don’t have beggars, they’re all in disguise. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/cuban-minister-we-dont-have-beggars-theyre-all-in-disguise

• Reddit. (2025, July 15). Cuban minister resigns after saying country has no beggars [r/news].