On Saturday 12th September 2009 members of Rock around the Blockade in Newcastle held a demonstration as part of the international call for solidarity with the Cuban 5 to demand their freedom.
The demonstration was at Grey’s Monument in Newcastle city centre where we had placards and banners of the five Cuban heroes calling for their immediate release, an information stall and speeches about the case of the Cuban 5, about rendition flights Britain has been involved in and the ‘war on terror’ which is used by imperialist countries like Britain and the US when they want to terrorise Muslim communities to justify their actions in the Middle East and to attack progressive governments like that of Cuba, all the while self-confessed terrorist Louis Pasada Carriles walks free on US soil. There was also a speech about ALBA and the coup in Honduras and how the gains and example of the Cuban revolution are acting as a beacon of inspiration to the working class internationally and sparking off socialist movements in Latin America.
We got a good response and used the event to tell people about Cuba and how it is leading the fight back against the capitalist crisis and how the Cuban 5 are the vanguard of this fight back. We used the example of Cuba to show that people’s needs can be met without having to exploit or oppress others, without having to go to war and that despite the economic crisis which has also hit Cuba and with the added effects of the US blockade not one person has been made homeless, not one person has been made redundant in Cuba. Unlike in Britain where people are losing their jobs and homes, and instead of promoting solidarity with the working class in Britain and the working class internationally our government and media use racism to keep us divided to make it easier for them to attack our basic rights and make a profit out of it.
Free the Cuban 5! Viva Cuba!
