http://themilitant.com/2017/8134/813458.html
The Militant (logo)
Vol. 81/No. 34 September 18, 2017
‘In footsteps of Che’ Cuba brigade kicks off Oct. 1
BY ALYSON KENNEDY
As of now, some 70 workers and youth from the U.S. will join with others
from around the world on the “In the Footsteps of Che” International
Brigade to Cuba Oct. Like a number of other brigades earlier this year,
including one that involved more than 50 people from the U.S., the Che
Guevara brigade was initiated by the Cuban Institute for Friendship with
the Peoples (ICAP).
Participants from the U.S. will be going from a number of cities. One of
the larger delegations will be coming from New York. “Going to Cuba
means a lot to me,” Shirelynn George, from Brooklyn, told the Militant
Sept. 4. George was born in Grenada, and in her 20s she was one of the
tens of thousands of working people there who joined in a revolution led
by Maurice Bishop and the New Jewel Movement in 1979. They overthrew the
U.S.-backed dictatorship of Eric Gairy, took political power, and began
to take control of their country’s destiny. They looked to the Cuban
Revolution as their example.
“When the revolution came, the Cubans came,” George, a nurses aide and
member of Service Employees International Union Local 1199, said. “They
set up health clinics, helped us with agriculture and education. I met
many Cubans then, but this is the first time I have been able to go
there myself. The relationship Grenada had with Cuba made us proud of
our nation and our revolution.”
In 1983, a Stalinist-minded faction led by Deputy Prime Minister Bernard
Coard overthrew the workers and farmers government, opened fire on
thousands of workers who fought to restore it, and murdered Bishop and
other revolutionaries who fought with them. This opened the door for a
U.S. invasion.
The “In the Footsteps of Che” brigade will mark the 50th anniversary of
the assassination of Ernesto Che Guevara, who was killed by the CIA and
troops of the Bolivian military dictatorship in October 1967 while he
was helping lead a revolutionary war against the dictatorship.
Guevara, originally from Argentina, met Fidel Castro in Mexico and
became a leader of the July 26th Movement, organizing one of the columns
that overthrew the U.S.-backed dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista in
1959. He held many leading posts in the Cuban government and represented
the Cuban Revolution around the world (see accompanying article).
“The objectives of the brigade are to contribute to a greater
understanding of the Cuban reality,” ICAP said in its letter inviting
people to join. “Voluntary work will be carried out in support of
agricultural development and the country’s productive sphere. Visits
will be made to important centers linked to Che in the provinces of
Havana, Pinar del Río, Santa Clara and Sancti Spíritus.”
“I’m going to visit Cuba so I can better defend the revolution there,”
Charlize Trana, another brigadista from New York, told the Militant. “I
want to learn how they have been able to maintain the revolution for so
long, under such difficult conditions, like Washington’s decadeslong
embargo.”
Trana, 39, was born in Nicaragua, and is an office worker. “I’m
especially looking forward to participating in the voluntary work and
learning how they organize that,” she said. “I’m not sure if people in
the U.S. can do what they did in Cuba. People seem too selfish here. I
want to learn more.”
U.S. participants are organizing fundraising to cover travel costs and
doing classes together about the Cuban Revolution to make it possible to
get the most from going on the brigade. And they are discussing the
importance of planning now to organize meetings when they get back. They
want to be able to explain to others what they learned about the Cuban
Revolution and why they should join in the fight to end the U.S. embargo
and Washington’s occupation of Guantánamo.
If you are interested in going on the brigade or making a contribution,
contact the Chicago Cuba Coalition at (312) 952-2618 or
ICanGoToCuba@xxxxxxxxx. There is a waiting list to fill any openings in
case someone who already signed up has to forgo the trip.
Related articles:
Che Guevara: A ‘man of ideas and action combined’
‘We can say our revolution is so great and humane’
Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home