On Sept. 12, the 11th anniversary of the unjust arrest of the Cuban Five heroes, four simultaneous public protests demanding freedom for the Five took place in Southern California cities. The actions—most of which occurred in cities that had never before held a Cuban Five event—illustrated a deepening level of support for the Five and in solidarity with socialist Cuba. The ANSWER Coalition (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism) and the Party for Socialism and Liberation organized all of the events in response to a call from the National Committee to Free the Cuban Five.
The largest regional action took place in Los Angeles at MacArthur Park, a hub of Central
American immigrant activity. Fifty people chanted and held signs and banners, highlighting the struggle to free the Five. “Hey Obama, can’t you see? The Cuban Five will be free!” rang out. Most of the chanting and speaking was conducted in Spanish. Chants like, “¡Cuba Si, Bloqueo No!” and “¡Viva Cuba Socialista!” were among the most popular. Hundreds of people passing by took flyers and signed the petition calling on President Obama to free the Five now.
Jacqueline Villagomez of the PSL co-chaired the event with Marcial Guerra of the ANSWER Coalition. Villagomez explained the importance of continuing the political struggle, alongside the legal struggle, to free the Five, “This week, the National Committee to Free the Five helped sue the government to reveal which journalists in Miami were paid by Washington to report negatively about the Five and Cuba in general. This is a very important step. We must also keep the struggle in the streets and reach out to working-class people who need to know about our five Cuban brothers locked up in U.S. prisons. That’s why we are here today.”
Cuba supporters and anti-imperialist organizations also spoke at the event, including Juan Jose Gutierrez of Latino Movement USA, Angel Alfaro of the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front, Carlos Mejia of the Honduran Resistance Network, Jennifer Caldwell of the National Committee to Free the Cuban Five, Carol Frances Likens of the L.A. Coalition in Solidarity with Cuba, Walter Lippman of CubaNews and David Feldman of the ANSWER Coalition, among others.
Long Beach
In Long Beach, dozens of people gathered for a militant picket line in solidarity with the Cuban Five. The action took place near the Museum of Latin American Art.
Volunteers passed out leaflets that explained the case of the Five to many people who had never heard about the case. Picketers chanted in English and Spanish, “Justice delayed is justice denied! Jail Posada, free the Five!” and “¿Qué queremos? ¡Justicia! ¿Cuándo? ¡Ahora! ”
Members of the ANSWER Coalition, the PSL and the National Committee to Free the Cuban Five were successful in attracting attention at one of Long Beach’s busiest intersections for over two hours. At the end, people spoke out in support of the five Cuban heroes.
Orange County
A rally in support of the Cuban Five in Santa Ana, Orange County proved successful in sparking interest in the case. With the people of the city out to “Las Fiestas de la Independencia,” PSL members and friends marched and passed out flyers to passersby. This helped inform people about the injustice that has occurred and recruit more people to take action to liberate the Five.
Inland Empire
Cuban Five supporters rallied at a busy street corner in Riverside, near the University of California. Activists chanted, held signs and handed out hundreds of flyers to passing motorists and pedestrians. It was the first rally for the Cuban Five held in the Inland Empire.
Reporting by Ian Thompson, Jessica Bardales, Nancy Infante and Michael Prysner
