The event began the day before at Fordham University with the holding of workshops, discussion panels, an exhibition of Cuban art and a short film festival, and the attendance of activists, intellectuals and artists from the host country, Canada, Puerto Rico and the Greater of the Antilles.
Its objectives are to demand the exclusion of Cuba from the list of nations sponsoring terrorism, to demand the lifting of the economic, financial and commercial blockade imposed for more than 60 years against its people, and to demand the end of all economic and travel limitations that weigh on her.
Participants such as the Cuban-American activist and leader of the Puentes de Amor solidarity movement, Carlos Lazo, the academic William LeoGrande and the professor August Nimtz, spoke out for the elimination of all restrictive policies that affect the island.
For his part, the United States congressman from Massachusetts James McGovern urged his compatriots to design initiatives to fight against the blockade.
The member of the House of Representatives considered the unilateral siege as the cause of all the difficulties suffered by the Antillean people.
He urged his listeners to pressure the administration of the northern country to reverse its position towards Cuba, and cited as a positive example the reintroduction of a bipartisan bill by five senators to eliminate Washington’s unilateral siege.
“This conference is important. The actions we take can make a difference, and inspire more people to work for it,” he said.
He then mentioned the financial restrictions designed against Cuba, the enthronement of the blockade, the unfair inclusion on the list of countries that sponsor terrorism, measures that, according to him, have the capacity to bring any economy to its knees.
Medea Benjamin, co-founder of the Codepink organization, also stated that far from being an aggressor country, the largest of the Antilles has been the victim of multiple attacks by the United States.
Also attending the meeting are members of the civil society of the Caribbean territory with a representation of the Federation of Cuban Women and the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples.
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