LCLAA Stands In Solidarity with the People of Cuba and Support their Right to Protest

MEDIA STATEMENT
July 15, 2021

Contact: LCLAA National/202-508-6919

Washington D.C. - Thousands of Cubans have taken to the streets to protest a multitude of issues including shortage of food and medicines, electricity outages and the governments mismanagement of the COVID 19 Pandemic. The people are demanding relief from its government and we stand with them as they seek a better future. Though the Cuban government continues to blame the United States for its current state, the fact remains that the Cuban government has done little to acknowledge the protesters’ demands but instead has chosen to escalate violence in an effort to squelch its critics, and these tactics will only serve to exacerbate the conflict.

Earlier this week, President Biden stated, ”We stand with the Cuban people and their clarion call for freedom and relief from the tragic grip of the pandemic and from the decades of repression and economic suffering to which they have been subjected by Cuba’s authoritarian regime.” But this must also be an opportunity for the United States to revisit Cuban policy that has not been fruitful in the long term. “Oppressed people will always take to the streets because the alternative to remain in abject despair is no longer tolerable, said Jose Vargas, Executive Director of LCLAA, “The people of Cuba deserve better, and we must support them.” LCLAA is committed to ensuring that all communities’ voices are heard. We will continue to explore ways in which we can support the people of Cuba.

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The Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA) is the leading national organization for Latino(a) workers and their families. LCLAA was born in 1972 out of the need to educate, organize and mobilize Latinos in the labor movement and has expanded its influence to organize Latinos in an effort to impact workers’ rights and their influence in the political process. LCLAA represents the interest of more than 2 million Latino workers in the American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), The Change to Win Federation, Independent Unions and all its membership. Visit LCLAA on the web at www.lclaa.org, on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram