Cuban soup kitchen sees soaring demand as economic crisis deepens

Cuban Elda William, a 60-year old former psychologist, had been making ends meet selling cellphone plans – until a sewage pipe at her home office burst, putting off prospective clients. No one has come to fix it and her income dried up, leaving her with little choice but to turn to Quisicuaba, a community-led soup kitchen for the hungry in central Havana. Those benefits – including a monthly ration of basics such as rice, beans, sugar, cooking oil and coffee – have been scaled back over the years and particularly recently, as the economic crisis has resulted in shortages and high prices.