Today, April 17, is the anniversary of the United State’s 1961 military invasion at Playa Girón. The Cuban people’s resolute response in defense of the Revolution and socialism, within only 72 hours, produced the first military defeat of imperialism in America

Author: Granma | internet@granma.cu

April 18, 2019 13:04:42

Revolutionary Government Declaration

Today, April 17, is the anniversary of the launching of the United State’s 1961 military invasion at Playa Girón. (Bay of Pigs) The Cuban people’s resolute response in defense of the Revolution and socialism, within only 72 hours, produced the first military defeat of imperialism in America.

Strangely, the date was chosen by the current U.S. government to announce new aggressive measures against Cuba and to reinforce their implementation of the Monroe Doctrine.

The Revolutionary Government rejects, in the strongest terms possible, the decision to now allow action to be taken in U.S. courts against Cuban and foreign entities, and to aggravate impediments to entering the United States faced by leaders and families of companies that legitimately invest in Cuba, in properties that were nationalized. These are actions established in the Helms-Burton Ac,t which was denounced long ago by the international community, and which the Cuban nation has repudiated since its promulgation and implementation in 1996, with the fundamental goal of imposing colonial tutelage on our country.

We repudiate, as well, the decision to reinstate limits on remittances that Cuban residents in the U.S. send to their families and friends, to further restrict travel by U.S. citizens to Cuba, and impose additional financial sanctions.

We strongly denounce references that attacks against U.S. diplomats have occurred in Cuba.

They attempt to justify their actions, as is customary, with lies and coercion.

Army General Raúl Castro stated this past April 10: “Cuba is blamed for all evils, using lies in the worst style of Hitler’s propaganda.”

The U.S. government resorts to slander, to cover up and justify the obvious failure of its sinister coup maneuver, designating in Washington an impostor “President” for Venezuela,

They accuse Cuba of being responsible for the strength and determination shown by the Bolivarian Chavista government, the country’s people, and the civic-military union defending their nation’s sovereignty. They lie shamelessly, alleging that Cuba has thousands of military and security troops in Venezuela, wielding influence, and determining what happens in this sister country.

They have the cynicism to blame Cuba for the economic and social situation Venezuela is facing after years of brutal economic sanctions, conceived and implemented by the United States and their allies, precisely to economically asphyxiate the country and cause suffering within the population.

Washington goes so far as to pressure governments in other countries to attempt to persuade Cuba to withdraw this unlikely supposed military and security aid, and even to stop lending support and solidarity to Venezuela.

The current U.S. government is well-known, within the country itself and internationally, for its unscrupulous use of lies as a tool in domestic and foreign policy. This is an old habit among imperialism’s practices.

The images are still fresh of President George W. Bush, with the support of current National Security John Bolton, indecently lying about supposed weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, a lie that served as the pretext to invade this Middle Eastern country.

Recorded in history, as well, are the bombing of the Maine anchored in Havana, and the self-inflicted Gulf of Tonkin incident, episodes that served as pretexts to unleash brutal wars in Cuba and Vietnam.

We cannot forget that the United States used fake insignia painted on the planes that carried out bombings here as a prelude to the Playa Girón invasion, to hide the fact that they were U.S. aircraft.

It should be clear that the U.S. slanders are based on an absolute, deliberate lie. Their intelligence agencies have more than enough evidence, surely more than any other state, to know that Cuba has no troops in Venezuela, and does not participate in military or security operations, even though it is the sovereign right of independent countries to determine how they cooperate in the area of defense, which is not a U.S. prerogative to question.

Those making this accusation have more than 250,000 soldiers and 800 military bases abroad, some of them in our hemisphere.

This government also knows, as Cuba has repeatedly stated publicly, that the more than 20,000 Cuban collaborators, more than 60% women, are undertaking in this South American country the same work currently being done by another 11,000 professionals from our country in 83 nations; contributing to the provision of social basic services, fundamentally in healthcare, which has been recognized by the international community.

It should also be absolutely clear that our firm solidarity with the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela is Cuba’s right as a sovereign state, and also a duty that is part of our tradition and among the irrevocable principles of the Cuban Revolution’s foreign policy.

No threat of reprisal against Cuba, no ultimatum or pressure on the part of the current U.S. government will dissuade the Cuban nation’s internationalist vocation, despite the devastating human and economic damage caused by the genocidal blockade to our people.

It is worth remembering that thuggish threats and ultimatums have been used in the past, when Cuba’s internationalists supported liberation movements in Africa, while the United States supported the opprobrious apartheid regime. Cuba was expected to renounce its solidarity commitments with the peoples of Africa in exchange for a promise of forgiveness, as if the Revolution needed to be pardoned by imperialism.

At that time, Cuba rejected the pressure, as we reject it today, with the greatest disdain.

Army General Raúl Castro recalled this past April 10, “Over 60 years, facing aggression and threats, Cubans have shown the iron will to resist and overcome the most difficult circumstances. Despite its immense power, imperialism does not possess the capacity to break the dignity of a united people, proud of its history and of the freedom conquered with so much sacrifice.”

The Cuban government calls on all members of the international community and U.S. citizens to put an end this irrational escalation and the hostile, aggressive policy of the Donald Trump government. Member states of the United Nations rightly demand, year after year almost unanimously, an end to this economic war. The peoples and governments of our region must ensure that the principles of the Proclamation of Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace prevail, for the benefit of all.

The President of the Councils of State and Ministers Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez declared this past April 13, “Cuba continues to have confidence in its strengths, its dignity, and also in the strength and dignity of other sovereign, independent nations. But Cuba also continues to believe in the people of the United States, the homeland of Lincoln, who are ashamed of those who act beyond the boundaries of universal law, in the name of the entire nation.”

Once again, Cuba repudiates the lies and the threats, and reiterates that its sovereignty, independence, and commitment to the cause of the peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean, are not negotiable.

Two days before the commemoration of the 58th anniversary of the victory at Playa Girón, a historic site within our national territory, where mercenary forces backed by imperialism bit the dust of defeat, the Cuban Revolution reiterates its resolute determination to confront the aggressive escalation of the United States, and prevail.

Havana, April 17, 2019.

Cuba condemns the U.S. government’s escalating preparations for a military adventure in Venezuela and calls on the international community to mobilize to prevent its consummation

The Revolutionary Government of the Republic of Cuba condemns the escalation of pressures and actions by the U.S. government in preparation for a military adventure under the guise of a “humanitarian intervention” in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, and calls on the international community to mobilize in order to prevent its consummation.

Between February 6 and 10 of 2019, several military transport aircraft have flown to the Rafael Miranda Airport in Puerto Rico, the San Isidro Air Base in the Dominican Republic, and other strategically located Caribbean Islands, most certainly without the knowledge of the governments of those nations. These flights took off from U.S. military facilities where Special Operation Troops and U.S. Marine Corps units operate.

These units have been used for covert operations, even against leaders of other countries.
Media and political circles – including within the U.S. – have revealed that extremist figures of the government with a long history of actions and slander aimed at causing or instigating wars, such as John Bolton, U.S. National Security Advisor; and Mauricio Claver-Carone, Director of the National Security Council’s Office of Western Hemisphere Affairs, counting on the connivance of Marco Rubio, Senator of the anti-Cuban mafia in Florida, designed, directly and thoroughly organized, and funded, from their posts in Washington, the attempted coup d’etat in Venezuela by means of the illegal self-proclamation of a President.

They are the same individuals who, either personally or through the State Department, have been exerting brutal pressures on numerous governments to force them to support the arbitrary call for new Presidential elections in Venezuela, while promoting recognition for the usurper who barely won 97,000 votes as a parliamentarian, against the more than 6 million Venezuelans who elected Constitutional President Nicolás Maduro Moros last May.

After the resistance mounted by the Bolivarian and Chavista people against the coup, evidenced by the mass demonstrations in support of President Maduro, and the loyalty of the National Bolivarian Armed Forces, the U.S. government has intensified its international political and media campaign, and strengthened unilateral economic coercive measures against Venezuela, among them the freezing of Venezuelan funds in third countries banks, worth billions of dollars, and the theft of the this sister nation’s oil revenue, causing serious humanitarian damage and harsh deprivation to its people.

In addition to this cruel and unjustifiable plunder, the U.S. intends to fabricate a humanitarian pretext in order to launch a military attack on Venezuela and, by resorting to intimidation, pressure, and force, is seeking to introduce into this sovereign nation’s territory alleged humanitarian aid – which is one thousand times inferior as compared to the economic damages provoked by the siege imposed by Washington .
The usurper and self-proclaimed “President” shamelessly announced his disposition to call for a U.S. military intervention under the pretext of receiving the aforementioned humanitarian aid, and has described the sovereign and honorable rejection of that maneuver as a crime against humanity.

High-ranking U.S. officials have been arrogantly and blatantly reminding us all, day after day, that when it comes to Venezuela, “all options are on the table, including military action.”

In the process of fabricating pretexts, the U.S .government has resorted to deception and slanders, presenting a draft resolution at the UN Security Council which, cynically and hypocritically expresses deep concern for the human rights and humanitarian situation…, the recent attempts to block the delivery of humanitarian aid, the millions of Venezuelan refugees and migrants, the excessive use of force against peaceful protesters, the breakdown of regional peace and security in Venezuela, and calls for taking the necessary steps.

It is obvious that the United States is paving the way to forcibly establish a humanitarian corridor under international supervision, invoke the obligation to protect civilians and take all necessary steps.
It is worth recalling that similar behaviors and pretexts were used to by the U.S. during the prelude to wars it launched against Yugoslavia, Iraq, and Libya, which resulted in tremendous human losses and caused enormous suffering.

The U.S. government attempts to remove the biggest obstacle – the Bolivarian and Chavista Revolution – to imperialist domination of Our America and deprive the Venezuelan people of the largest certified oil reserves on the planet and numerous strategic natural resources.

It is impossible to forget the sad and painful history of U.S. military interventions perpetrated more than once in Mexico, Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Cuba, Honduras, and most recently Grenada and Panama.

As was warned by Army General Raúl Castro Ruz on July 14, 2017, “The aggression and coup violence against Venezuela harm all of Our America and only benefit the interests of those set on dividing us in order to exercise their control over our peoples, unconcerned about causing conflicts of incalculable consequences in this region, like those we are seeing in different parts of the world.”

History will severely judge a new imperialist military intervention in the region and the complicity of those who might irresponsibly support it.

What is at stake today in Venezuela is the sovereignty and dignity of Latin America and the Caribbean and the peoples of the South. Equally at stake is the survival of the rule of International Law and the UN Charter.

What is being defined today is whether the legitimacy of a government emanates from the express and sovereign will of its people, or from the recognition of foreign powers.

The Revolutionary Government calls for an international mobilization in defense of peace in Venezuela and the region, based on the principles established in the Proclamation of Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace, which was adopted by heads of state and government of CELAC in 2014.

It likewise welcomes and supports the Montevideo Mechanism, an initiative promoted by Mexico, Uruguay, the Caribbean Commonwealth (CARICOM), and Bolivia, which seeks to preserve peace in Venezuela based on the principles of non-interference in the internal affairs of states, legal equality of states, and the peaceful resolution of conflicts, as stated in its recent declaration.

It welcomes the positive consideration given to this initiative by President Maduro Moros and the international community, and expresses its concern given the U.S. government’s categorical rejection of the dialogue initiatives promoted by several countries, including this one.

The Revolutionary Government reiterates its firm and unwavering solidarity with Constitutional President Nicolás Maduro Moros, the Bolivarian Chavista Revolution and the civic and military unity of its people, and calls upon all peoples and governments of the world to defend peace and mount a joint opposition, over and above political or ideological differences, to a new imperialist military intervention in Latin America and the Caribbean, which will damage the independence, sovereignty and interests of all peoples from the Rio Bravo to Patagonia.

Havana, February 12, 2019.

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Two hundred people packed the People’s Forum in midtown Manhattan on Feb. 8 to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Cuban Revolution.

Co-chairs Ike Nahem of the New York/New Jersey Cuba Sí Coalition and Manolo De Los Santos, executive director of the People’s Forum, welcomed the audience.

Santos pointed out that Cuba has defended Venezuela in the United Nations Security Council. “Dreaming of a better planet will only be possible under socialism,” he added.

Nahem welcomed the 50-person strong delegation from the Cuban Mission to the U.N. He noted that the “dusted-off war criminal Elliot Abrams” was one of the plotters against Venezuela.

People were encouraged to visit Cuba. Three groups will be going in the next few months: the May Day International Brigade; the 50th anniversary Venceremos Brigade that’s hoping to bring 300 people to Cuba; and the 30th Friendshipment Caravan of the Interreligious Foundation for Community Organization (IFCO).

Gail Walker, IFCO’s executive director, described going to socialist Cuba as a “life-changing experience.” Walker has spent decades defending the Caribbean country. Her father, the late Rev. Lucius Walker, the founder of IFCO, was shot and wounded in Nicaragua by U.S.-financed contra terrorists.

Judy Sheridan-Gonzalez, president of the New York State Nurses Association, also spoke up for Cuba. “Nothing like going to a country that spends one percent of what the U.S. does on health care but gives high quality care to all” was how she described the socialist country. Cuba has lower infant and maternal mortality rates than the U.S.

The union president told how she had testified at the U.N. about the colonial situation in Puerto Rico. Sheridan-Gonzalez also alerted the audience to a possible strike of 15,000 nurses.

Cuba’s ambassador speaks

People also came to say goodbye to Cuba’s ambassador to the U.N., Anayansi Rodríguez Camejo. She will now become Cuba’s deputy foreign minister.

Gail Walker introduced the ambassador. She denounced the U.S. government’s slander about Cubans lacking human rights. “We salute them [the Cuban people] for their acts of solidarity in defense of Venezuela,” said Walker.

Rodríguez Camejo thanked people for supporting Cuba against the blockade by being “in the streets” last October.

She paid tribute to Brooklyn-born Harry Reeve, who fought and died in Cuba’s first war of independence; the tobacco workers in Tampa, Fla., who supported the struggles in Cuba; and those who came out to Harlem’s Hotel Theresa in 1960 to welcome Fidel Castro.

The ambassador praised IFCO’s Pastors for Peace caravans in their “fight against the criminal blockade.” At one point the audience chanted “¡Fidel presente!”

Rodríguez Camejo gave support for her “sister country of Puerto Rico” and demanded an “independent state of Palestine.”

“We will not give in to the enemy,” declared the ambassador, who stressed that Cuba’s new constitution will confirm the country’s socialist character. She saluted the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.; Malcolm X, who met with Fidel Castro at the Hotel Theresa; the Rev. Lucius Walker; Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez; and the five Cuban heroes who spent years in Yankee jails for fighting terrorism.

Rodríguez Camejo ended her talk by declaring “Long live the revolution in Venezuela!” and “¡Socialismo o Muerte!”

The ambassador was given a book describing Cuba’s role in defeating apartheid. Two thousand Cuban soldiers were killed while fighting alongside Angolan and Namibian soldiers against the army of then-apartheid South Africa.

No wonder Nelson Mandela went to Cuba and embraced his comrade Fidel Castro.

Fallen warrior honored

Many veteran activists attended the meeting. Among them were members of the Universal Zulu Nation, which provided security for the meeting and gave a very impressive martial arts demonstration on the stage.

A delegation from the December 12th Movement, including Amadi Ajamu, Omowale Clay and Roger Wareham were there to support Cuba. D12 had organized a demonstration to defend Venezuela earlier in the week in front of the U.S. Mission to the U.N.

Juanita Young, whose unarmed son Malcolm Ferguson was killed by a New York cop in 2000, was there. Young, who has a been leader in fighting killings by police, traveled to Cuba with a delegation of other parents whose children had been killed by the cops.

Chairing the last part of the meeting were Joan Gibbs of the Cuba Sí Coalition and Sharon Shoatz. Shoatz’s father, Russell Maroon Shoatz, has spent decades in prison on frame-up charges, including 22 straight years in solitary confinement.

It was announced with great sorrow that Black liberation fighter Nehanda Isoke Abiodun had died in Cuba. Abiodun had been a founder of the New Afrikan People’s Organization and was an organizer for the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement.

Pursued by the FBI, the revolutionary fighter found refuge in Cuba, just like her comrade Assata Shakur. For its global role as a territory liberated from the claws of imperialism and as a revolutionary haven for freedom fighters, Cuba has to be defended.

Long live the Cuban Revolution!

Photos by Anne Pruden

Detroit — Events on Feb. 5 demonstrated the profound disconnect between poor and working people and the U.S. government.

In the morning, the city of Detroit’s City Council voted unanimously to urge “Congress and the President to immediately end all aspects of the United States’ economic, commercial and financial embargo against Cuba, including restrictions on travel to Cuba by U.S. citizens. Venceremos.”

But that evening, Donald Trump’s State of the Union address endorsed regime change in Venezuela and the self-appointed, counterrevolutionary Juan Guiadó as president. The Jan. 30 Wall Street Journal characterized the U.S. attack on Venezuela as the first step in “reshaping Latin America,” also aimed at Cuba.

During public comment on the Detroit resolution, three people spoke in favor, none opposed. Mike Shane, who traveled to Cuba in October 2017, explained what it was like looking at Cuba through Detroit eyes during his visit. He asked Cubans about foreclosures, evictions and water shutoffs for nonpayment of bills. Cubans reacted with surprise, since they have never experienced anything like that.

Detroit is now the eleventh city to adopt such a resolution, following Richmond, Berkeley, Sacramento and Oakland in California; Helena, Mont.; Minneapolis; and most recently St. Paul, Minn.; Pittsburgh; Brookline, Mass.; and Hartford, Conn. Hartford is the second such city resolution in 2019, following St. Paul on Jan. 23.

U.S. cities are joining international voices to end the decadeslong economic war against socialist Cuba. Since 1992, the majority of countries in the United Nations General Assembly have also called on the U.S. to end its unilateral hostility to its island neighbor. In 2018, 189 countries supported Cuba’s resolution with only two opposed — the U.S. and Israel.

On Jan. 28, the Cuban Embassy in Washington, D.C., hosted a reception on the occasion of Cuba’s National Day and the 60th anniversary of the Cuban Revolution, plus the centennial of the opening of the Cuban Embassy. The date marked the 166th anniversary of the birth of Cuba’s national hero, José Martí.

Cuban Ambassador José Ramón Cabañas Rodríguez welcomed those gathered, explaining the significance of the date and noting the destructive Category 4 tornado that had hit Cuba’s capital city Havana the night before, killing 4 and injuring nearly 200 others.

Grey Reddit, president of the Mobile-Havana Society, introduced photographer Chip Cooper and the photo exhibit “Common Ground,” with images from Havana and Mobile, Ala., displayed throughout the embassy.  

At a time when the U.S. government threatens to tighten the unilateral economic, financial and commercial blockade of its smaller island neighbor and openly engineers regime change in Venezuela, the large color photos of similar sites in both countries reminded guests of the enduring friendship and solidarity between the people of the U.S. and the people of socialist Cuba.

El Gobierno Revolucionario de la República de Cuba condena y rechaza enérgicamente el intento de imponer, a través de un golpe de estado, un gobierno títere al servicio de los Estados Unidos en la República Bolivariana de Venezuela, y expresa su invariable solidaridad con el Gobierno del presidente constitucional Nicolás Maduro Moros.

Los verdaderos objetivos de las acciones contra Venezuela son controlar los vastos recursos de esa hermana nación y destruir el valor de su ejemplo, como proceso emancipador y de defensa de la dignidad e independencia de Nuestra América.

Como expresara el presidente Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez: «La soberanía de nuestros pueblos se dirime hoy en la actitud ante Venezuela. Respaldar el legítimo derecho de la hermana nación a definir su destino es defender la dignidad de todos».

No deben olvidarse otros intentos como el golpe militar del 2002 y el golpe petrolero del 2003, la agresiva Orden Ejecutiva de los Estados Unidos que califica a Venezuela como «una amenaza inusual y extraordinaria a la seguridad nacional y a la política exterior» de la superpotencia, las medidas coercitivas unilaterales, el llamado a un golpe militar contra el Gobierno constitucional de Venezuela, la advertencia del Presidente de los Estados Unidos de utilizar «una posible opción militar» y el intento de magnicidio el pasado 4 de agosto contra el Presidente Maduro.

Los actos de un grupo de países y el vergonzoso papel de la OEA constituyen un nuevo y desesperado intento por aplicar una fracasada política de cambio de régimen, que no se ha podido imponer debido a la inquebrantable resistencia del pueblo venezolano y su voluntad de defender la soberanía nacional.

La Habana, 23 de enero de 2019

The Revolutionary Government of the Republic of Cuba condemns and energetically rejects the attempt to impose a coup d’etat, a puppet government at the service of the United States, in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, and expresses its unwavering solidarity with the government of Constitutional President Nicolás Maduro Moros.

The true objectives of actions against Venezuela are to control the vast resources of this sister nation and destroy the value of its example, as an emancipatory process defending the dignity and independence of Our America.

As President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez said: “The sovereignty of our peoples is expressed today in one’s attitude toward Venezuela. To support the legitimate right of the sister nation to define its own destiny is to defend the dignity of all.”

Other coup attempts should not be forgotten, such as the military coup of 2002 and the 2003 oil lockout; the aggressive U.S. Executive Order describing Venezuela as “an unusual and extraordinary threat to national security and foreign policy” of the superpower; unilateral coercive measures; the call for a military coup against the constitutional government of Venezuela; the threat by the President of the United States to use “a possible military option”; and the August 4, 2018, assassination attempt against President Maduro.

The acts of a group of countries and the shameful role of the Organization of American States (OAS) constitute a new, desperate attempt to implement an unsuccessful policy of regime change, which has not been imposed due to the unwavering resistance of the Venezuelan people and their determination to defend national sovereignty.

Havana, January 23, 2019

The historic agreement reached between the Cuban Baseball Federation, Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association is a testament to Cuba’s sovereignty and the unity of the Cuban people.

Revolutionary Cuba has been a sovereign and independent state since January 1, 1959, when a successful revolution occurred that led to the overthrow of the dictator Fulgencio Batista. The July 26 Movement, led by Fidel Castro, was the revolutionary vanguard organization that led the revolution.

Immediately after the revolution, the Cuban government enacted progressive reforms that benefited the Cuban people, such as land reform, and universal health care and education, just to name a few. In addition, Cuba exerted its sovereignty and no longer allowed Cuba to be the playground of the rich and wealthy, particularly those from the U.S.

The U.S. government retaliated by placing a blockade against the island. However, the U.S. and Cuba continued to share one national pastime: baseball. The blockade could not stop that.

This shared passion can be traced all the way back to 1868 in Lansingburgh, N.Y. Enrique “Steve” Bellán, the “father” of Cuban baseball, laced up his cleats for the first time in the U.S., playing six seasons in the National Association of Base Ball Players. At the end of 1874, Bellán participated in the first formal, organized baseball game in Havana, Cuba, where he was born.

Agreement ends trafficking

On Dec. 19, 2018, in Havana, the Cuban Baseball Federation (CBF) and Major League Baseball (MLB) along with the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) reached an agreement that will allow Cuban players to sign MLB contracts without defecting, which previously was the only way for a Cuban to play in the Major Leagues. This agreement effectively ends the practice of encouraging Cuban baseball players to defect  and eliminates the dangerous trafficking that had gone on for decades.

The agreement between all the parties — MLB, MLBPA, FCB — essentially guarantees the orderly and  nondiscriminatory presence of Cuban baseball players in U.S. baseball. Cuban players will be able to sign regular contracts with Major League teams without having to give up their Cuban residence or their connection with the teams they play with in Cuba.  

“Today is a happy day for Cuban baseball, for the world, the people of Cuba and the United States,” said Higinio Vélez Carrión, president of the CBF, at a news conference.

“The agreement will help curb illegal activities such as human trafficking, which for several years has put the lives and physical well-being of many young Cuban baseball talents and their families at risk. It is also part of the effort to continue strengthening the practice, enjoyment and development of the national sport. The agreement will have a positive impact for many athletes in the country, for national teams and the CBF,” he continued.

The MLBPA players’ union executive director, Tony Clark, said: “Establishing a safe, legal process for entry to our system is the most important step we can take to ending the exploitation and endangerment of Cuban players who pursue careers in Major League Baseball. The safety and well-being of these young men remains our primary concern.”

The agreement mirrors the rules for Cuban players under contract in Japan and South Korea, and  is binding through Oct. 31, 2021, expiring around the same time as the MLB-MLBPA union contract.

Washington, D.C.

Fifty years ago, hundreds of young militants overcame U.S. government obstacles and repression to forge the very first international solidarity brigade with the Cuban revolution, named the Venceremos Brigade. Over the years, literally thousands of people from the U.S. have traveled to Cuba with the VB, ignoring and confronting the U.S. ban on travel to Cuba.

Applications at VB4Cuba.org are now available for the 50th Anniversary Venceremos Brigade, which will take place July-August 2019. Applications are due March 1 but the application fee is waived for applications filed before Feb. 1.

Although direct flights from U.S. airports give the general public an illusion of normalized relations between the U.S. and Cuba, the U.S. economic, financial and commercial blockade is very much in place. Even basic medical supplies and parts ― allowed under U.S. law ― are unavailable for purchase abroad because corporations and banks refuse any transaction with Cuba, fearful of U.S. fines.

The steadfastness of the solidarity movement — alongside the millions of Cubans committed to self determination for their island nation ― has brought these victories: a Cuban Embassy in Washington, D.C.; a U.S. farm bill that includes funding, albeit limited, to promote trade with Cuba; and Cuban baseball players who no longer are forced to choose between their homeland and a major league baseball contract.

The Cuban Revolution cannot be erased and their accomplishments must not be hidden from workers and oppressed people in the U.S.

VB50 promises to be a special experience where you can witness what Cuba has built over the difficult decades, together with brigadistas, as they remember those early cane cutting days.

In spring 2019, the Pastors for Peace project of the Interreligious Foundation for Community Organization (IFCO) plans to hold educational meetings across the country to discuss current events with Cuba, ending the blockade, travel restrictions and getting the U.S. out of Guantánamo. If your organization wants to host a speaker with information about the Cuba Caravan, please write to friendshipmentcaravan@ifconews.org

This is also a historic project. When the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc fell in 1989, the danger of U.S. aggression against Cuba spiked. In response, the late Rev. Lucius Walker proposed solidarity caravans to the Cuban island. Every year and sometimes more than once per year, sometimes via Mexico and other times through Canada, IFCO built an annual international solidarity action.

14th International May Day Brigade

The Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples has invited supporters from around the world to join them for May Day, the International Workers Day, from April 21 to May 5. The program, which includes travel and events outside of Havana, accomodations with three meals daily for 15 days, is $650 per person. You are responsible for your travel to Havana and the cost of a Cuban visa.

All the information about this exciting opportunity can be found at the May Day Brigade tab on the National Network on Cuba website, NNOC.info. Space is limited. The deadline for applications is March 15. For more information write to ICanGoToCuba@nnoc.info

Let’s go to Cuba and see it for ourselves. Millions of people from around the world do it, why can’t we!