Sunday 18 May 2025 / 18.30 (London Time)
Eyewitness reports from Cuba's international May Day brigade
In April and May activists from Rock Around the Blockade will participate in Cuba's 18th International May Day Brigade of Voluntary Work organised by ICAP (Cuba's institute of friendship with the peoples), visiting schools, hospitals, neighbourhoods, workplaces and learning from Cuba's revolutionary example to inspire our struggles in Britain. Recognising the intensification of the asphyxiating blockade we will take over material aid including medical equipment. Our brigadistas will be reporting back from these experiences at this informative webinar.
We will also hear from the 1 cent 4 Cuba campaign, an international initiative to expose the unlawful extra-territorial application of the US blockade by banks in Britain and Europe. These banks are illegally complying with US sanctions against Cuba, blocking fundraising efforts for humanitarian aid to Cuba alongside commercial transactions. This extraterritorial application of the US blockade against Cuba is a violation of international law as well as UK and European laws and affects everyone!
1 cent 4 Cuba brings together activists internationally to take action against the banks, through coordinated civil action, legal challenges and street protest.
With increased aggression from the US Trump administration, it is more important than ever to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with socialist Cuba. The US blockade against Cuba has been in place for six decades and is estimated to have cost over £144bn cumulatively. In his first term, US President Trump imposed an additional 243 measures against Cuba, including 56 specifically targeting the energy sector. These measures were tightened under President Biden and now in his second term Trump has indicated that he will implement an even more aggressive policy towards Cuba. These sanctions have had a huge impact on daily life in Cuba, food production, imports, medicine production, health provision, agriculture are all significantly affected. With its alternative model of production, participatory democracy, outstanding universal systems of free healthcare and education and internationalist support for anti-imperialist struggles worldwide, Socialist Cuba is the threat of a good example and the US blockade is determined to crush it.
Come and hear eyewitness accounts from Cuba's struggle for socialism and get involved with international initiatives to break the blockade.
Co-hosted by @ratbcuba and @1c4cuba