Cubans seek solutions, solace in Santería amid crises

A doll depicting the Yoruba deity Yemayá is propped up on a chair before the start of a Santería ceremony at the home of Mandy Arrazcaeta in Havana, Cuba. (Ramon Espinosa / AP)

HAVANA — From a two-room concrete home on the fringes of Cuba’s capital, the rumble of wooden drums spills onto the streets.

Neighbors gather at the door, and kids climb a fence to peer inside. They watch as dozens of Cubans wearing white and African beads make offerings at a blue altar that takes up half a room, asking for luck, protection and good health.