th Venceremos Brigade
Today we joined with the members of the Venceramos Brigade, who have traveled in solidarity with Cuba since 1969. Together we went to theMartin Luther King Jr. Park, where we laid a wreath in memory Dr. King. We heard Megan Hayes-Bell, on her fourth Brigade, tell us: “Let’s continue this
We then held a press conference, with Gail Walker, Director of IFCO; Joel Suárez, Director of the Martin Luther King Jr. Center in Havana, and Fr. Luis Barrios, a member of IFCO’s board of directors. Suárez recalled that night of 1980 in Nicaragua, when his father, Rev. Raul Suárez, challenged Rev. Lucius Walker to send a caravan to Cuba — and the US-Cuba Friendshipment Caravans were conceived. Twenty eight caravans later, we thought some progress had been made in US-Cuban relations, but the Trump administration’s policy change has changed everything.
“We send you our gratitude; You are the example, even if the bridge is over turbulent waters there are people who will continue to cross it, with or without licenses, because love is bigger, “ Suárez said.
Gail Walker spoke about the current caravan: organizing events in 30 states, visiting members of Congress, talking about the life in Cuba – the reality, not the life of the media mis-information. “We will continue to come. Our purpose is to come to learn and return to our homes with a true picture of the country. Our Caravan is in many ways an international brigade, composed of many sectors of society, which collectively express our opposition to the blockade.”
Fr. Luis Barrios recalled that peace is not alone the absence of war, but that without justice there is no peace. “We tell Trump ‘honestly, Mr President, we are not afraid of you. IFCO is a movement, a revolution that grows and deepens. The challenge is not Trump and what could happen on September 15 (when new measures come into force towards Cuba). The challenge is the blockade that is economic, political, spiritual. We reaffirm the Cuban people that we will not stop until it ends.”
In the discussion with the press, Fr. Barrios stressed that IFCO’s strongest struggle is against disinformation in the United States, whose government opposes IFCO’s work. “Our strongest weapon is to educate, mobilize and organize politically, that is how revolutions happen”.
As an example of the US government’s disinformation action, Gail Walker mentioned the reference made by President Trump in the announcement of the change of policy towards Cuba, where he said that people with religious beliefs were repressed in Cuba. “Yesterday we were in a church service in a Baptist church,” she explained, “and we saw that there is no repression. In the United States churches, mosques, synagogues are burnt, and here there is a growing expression of faith.”
Then, caravanistas and brigadistas were briefed by Yuri Gala, from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, regarding the process of normalization of relations between Cuba and States United States from December 17, 2014 to now. Gala acknowledged the work done by organizations such as IFCO and the Venceremos Brigade, which have been standing with the Cuban people long before Cuba became “popular”.
In his analysis he outlined some of the achievements of the talks with President Obama: such as the return of the Cuban Five, the withdrawal of Cuba from the list of countries sponsoring terrorism, the elimination of the program to encourage Cuban doctors to leave their posts and come to the US, and the so-called “dry/wet feet” policy, that encouraged illegal immigration by giving green cards (after a year) to Cubans who could actually set a foot on US soil.
He also listed the meetings between Presidents Raul Castro and Barack Obama, and high-level visits to the respective countries. As a result of this process, both countries currently have 22 bilateral agreements, which address key issues such as the environment, drug trafficking, migration and agriculture, among others. He explained that, despite these advances, the core of the blockade is still intact. There are still issues such as economic pressure on international banks, subversion programs funded by the United States, the Guantanamo naval base, compensation for economic and human damages, and policies that promote illegal migration of Cubans.
What the normalization process has shown is that despite deep differences, there are enough common points to sustain a conversation between two civilized nations, based on respect for sovereignty and self-determination.
On the actions of the new administration of the United States, Gala said that we are now facing the announcement of a setback in the agreements and the spirit that led to the normalization of relations. He referred to President Trump’s aggressive speech announcing the new measures, made while standing next to people connected with acts of aggression against Cuba, including acts of terrorism.
September 15, to know in detail what will be implemented by the agencies of the American government.
The end of the day was spent at an exhibit about the aggressive acts committed by the US government against Cuba. Displays and audiovisuals made ‘real’ the thousands of deaths and the incalculable damages over these many years.
