# @usatoday on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/DbJMnG2nxd2
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/68272081-usatoday-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/593e39f2c8.jpg
- **Posted:** 2026-07-23T17:25:46.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** USA TODAY (@USATODAY) — https://gondola.cc/USATODAY

## Caption

Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara was given a choice known to many Cuban dissidents: Stay in prison or leave Cuba and never return. 

Otero, a prolific visual artist, and fellow political prisoner Maykel “Osorbo” Castillo Pérez, the rapper who co-wrote the Latin Grammy-winning anthem #PatriaYVida, have become central figures in high-stakes negotiations between the United States and #Cuba that could reshape relations between the longtime Cold War rivals.

Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro, former Cuban president Raúl Castro’s grandson, told USA TODAY that Cuba would be willing, under the right conditions, to release “people deemed political prisoners.” Human rights advocates say more than 1,300 political prisoners remain in Cuban jails.

But for many Cubans, freedom comes with another difficult reality: exile. 

Read the exclusive interview with #LuisManuelOteroAlcantara from Miami at the link in our bio. 

📸: David Liz for USA TODAY; Giorgio Viera/AFP via Getty Images

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## Tags

luismanueloteroalcantara, patriayvida, cuba

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