Toronto rally for the freedom of the Cuban Five

Report from the June 7th, 2014 rally for the freedom of the Cuban Five


See the photo gallery HERE

On a bright and sunny day in Toronto, Canada, friends and supporters of the anti-terrorist Cuban Five Political Prisoners of the Empire assembled in front of the Bell Media Centre/CTV-CP24 (a 24-hour Toronto television station) in order to help break the silence imposed on the unjust imprisonment of the Cuban Five imprisoned in the U.S. since September 1998.

The Toronto Forum on Cuba as the organizer of the Rally for the Cuban Five is glad to report that some 35 people, mainly from the Latin American community, including members from the Latin American and Caribbean Solidarity Network, along with the Anishnabe indigenous communities in Canada participated in this protest picket line.   A group of Muslims from the Pakistani community with their leader and Imam also joined us and brother Zafar Bangash, the Director of the Institute of Contemporary Islamic Thought, expressed a message of solidarity in his short speech and committed to continue fighting for the freedom of the Five Cuban heroes.

In addition, representatives of the LGBTIAQ / Trans & Allies Rainbow Sea of Red Open Collective with Cuba, CCFA-Toronto, Circulo Bolivariano Louis Riel (Toronto),  the Juan Gualberto Gómez Association of Cubans in Toronto delivered messages of solidarity and the continuation of the support of their organizations for the freedom of the Cuban Five.  Last, but certainly not least, the organizers of the Hamilton Coalition to Stop the War and the Kitchener Waterloo Anti-Colonial Collective closed this very successful solidarity Rally for the Cuban Five in Toronto.

Successful because, albeit there were only 35 people attending, this protest took place in the midst of the Provincial Election in Ontario and some by-election in some areas of Toronto for the Federal Parliament in Canada.  But the rally brought forward not only the most resolute friends of the Cuban Five but MOST IMPORTANTLY ended up by a warm and passionate speech by the youngest amongst all of us who joined us from Kitchener/Waterloo and taking into consideration that some of his young friends of Irish background would have been there also, if it wasn´t for them mistakenly having gone to the CBC media centre instead of the Bell Media Centre of CTV/CP 24.

After more than an hour of chanting and rallying in front of this major media centre and considering the fact that it is a very busy part of Toronto, we were able to hand out about 200 informational sheets on the Cuban Five, a leaflet prepared by Toronto Forum on Cuba, which we made available in order to explain the case of their unjust imprisonment to the people passing by and to those who stopped to ask questions about the rally and about the Cuban Five.

¡Los Cinco Héroes de la Humanidad Volverán!

We, in the Toronto Forum on Cuba, are committed to carrying the fight for the freedom of the 5 to any place where it is needed.  On June 22nd we will take this message to Toronto´s Pride Parade, on June 26th in Kitchener, on July 5th and 6th through helping the Pastors for Peace Caravan speaking tour.  We will also dedicate this year´s Toronto Forum on Cuba´s July 26th Celebration to Nelson Mandela and to the Cuban Five, as well as rendering tribute to Juan Formell and Luis Carbonell.  On the last Friday of the holy month of Ramadan, we will be marching in solidarity with the friends of Palestine, on August 22nd we will be in Ottawa with two workshops at the Peoples’ Social Forum at the University of Ottawa.  Then, on September 12th we will convene all forces to come out and express their solidarity with the Cuban nation and with the Cuban Five, a process which we have already started, after receiving the beautiful documentary of the graduation ceremony of the Pakistani medical students in Cuba, by talking to the leaders of the Muslim/Pakistani community to organize a showing of this documentary, as well as other activities in solidarity with Cuba and with the Cuban Five.

The fight continues until EACH and EVERY ONE of the Five heroes are back home and with their loved ones.  We quote Gerardo Hernández once again, as his words describe the present situation of the Cuban Five case most accurately:  “Only a jury of millions will bring us home.” and we will tirelessly heed the advice of this hero of humanity while continuing to work patiently, though ferociously, to build this necessary movement.

Brotherly,

Morteza Gorgzadeh
Coordinator
Toronto Forum on Cuba
torontoforumoncuba@rogers.com
www.torontoforumoncuba.com