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Hundreds of people gathered on SW 8th Street in Little Havana in solidarity with the growing protests in Cuba on Sunday.
SW 8th Street was closed from 32nd Avenue to 37th Avenue as crowds increased during the afternoon rain.
“People here are crying because there is no medicine, there is no health, there is no food,” a protester in Miami said as she pleaded with people to share the news of what is happening in Cuba on social networks.
Protesters also observed a minute’s silence when some learned that a person had been killed during protests on the island.
Thousands of Cubans on the island protest against the government of Miguel Díaz Canel as the island goes through one of its worst socio-economic crises since the fall of the Soviet Union.
Worsening conditions, including the third wave of the coronavirus pandemic, a worrying lack of food, medicine and other essentials are some of the reasons for the protests, among the largest since the start of the dictatorship in the 1950s.
The lack of electricity in homes and workplaces has returned to normal, according to reports from the island.
“Cubans are worthy and ready to rule themselves without tyranny,” Miami Mayor Francis Suarez told a press conference. “It can end today and it must end today. The implications of this moment can mean freedom for millions of people in the hemisphere, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans and many more.”
During the press conference, Suarez called for an international intervention led by the United States “to protect the Cuban people from a bloodbath”.
“Cubans are worthy and ready to govern themselves without tyranny,” said the mayor. “It can end today and it must end today. The implications of this moment can mean freedom for millions of people in the hemisphere of Nicaraguans and Venezuelans and many more.”
U.S. Representative Maria Elvira Salazar (FL-27) said she believed this moment was “the beginning of the end” of the regime after a “perfect storm” scenario on the island after thousands of coronavirus cases in a day, the lack of food and medical staff.
Cries of “down with dictatorship”, “freedom” and “homeland and life” were heard in several of the demonstrations that took place in different Cuban cities, according to reports.
Diaz Canel addressed the island on Sunday on a national radio and television station. He said the incitement to protest came from outside the island as part of a smear campaign launched by the United States, while calling on Cubans to remain calm.
“The order of the fight is given, the revolutionaries take to the streets”, declared Díaz-Canel.
In various live streams on Facebook, hundreds of people can be seen marching through the streets of towns such as San Antonio de los Baños, Guira de Melena and Alquízar, all located in the province of Artemisa, near Havana.
In several protest areas, internet service on cell phones has been cut and news from the island is cut off.
Back in Miami, the three US representatives issued a joint statement in solidarity with the protests in Cuba.
“Now more than ever, the United States and the international community must support the Cuban people in their struggle for freedom,” said Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart (FL-25), Carlos A. Gimenez (FL- 26) and Congresswoman Maria Elvira. Salazar (FL-27) wrote in his statement: “The humanitarian crisis facing Cuba right now is another symptom of the incompetence and the utter cruelty of Cuban tyranny. We know what freedom means to the Cuban people, and now, as the regime uses savage violence against the people who demonstrate peacefully in the streets, the world has an obligation to stand by the courageous Cuban people.
Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava was seen at the rallies and released the statement saying, “Thousands of people across Cuba are taking to the streets in peaceful protest. We are united with the Cuban people of the island and our entire community at this historic moment in the struggle for freedom, dignity and basic human rights – may their courageous actions bring real change and bring us closer to the dream of a Cuba Libre . “
This is a developing story. Please check for more updates.
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