Standing in Solidarity with Cuba

The United States is a nation of freedom and democracy, but as we know not all countries offer those same freedoms. On July 11, 2021, after more than six decades of brutal dictatorship, the Cuban people bravely marched for their freedom and demanded an end to the disastrous communist regime that has failed Cuban citizens.

In Cuba, basic civil and human rights have been stripped away from citizens by communist rule. We see the American flag waiving on the streets because they yearn for what we have — freedom. As Cuban activists fight for freedom and democracy, they have been regularly kidnapped, unjustly arrested, beaten, and murdered. Communist leadership also blocked access to the Internet, attacked and arrested protestors, and ignored the Cuban activists' fight for freedom.

Now more than ever, it is time for the United States and the international community to stand with the people of Cuba as they fight against this oppressive system.

In an effort to support the Cuban people, I signed on to a letter with 143 other members of the United State House of Representatives and the United States Senate to member nations of the Organization of American States and the European Union, as well as other democratic nations and Secretary of State Antony Blinken, urging them to help the Cuban people in their fight for freedom. This letter recognizes the communist Cuban administration is illegitimate, encourages an end to all financial support of the communist Cuban regime, and coordinates democratic assistance to the people of Cuba.

I am also a cosponsor of H.Res. 548 which denounces the horrors of socialism, and H.Res. 529 which expresses solidarity with the Cuban people in their struggle for a Cuba free from communism.

However, the Biden Administration has yet to take any action to assist the Cuban people as they struggle for freedom. In order to show leadership, the Biden Administration and Democrats’ must create access to the internet for Cuban protesters so they can communicate with the outside world, emphatically denounce the communist Cuban government, and immediately end all financial support to the government.

I am heartbroken for the families in Cuba who have spent decades living under communist rule. They deserve opportunity, democracy, and freedom — just like Americans. We must do everything we can as a country to support Cuba as they seek to take control of their future. The time for democracy in Cuba is now.