Women Advancing Gender Equality, Racial Justice and Sustainable Development
in Cuba
Please join us for our Fall 2013 Women's Research Delegation which will include attending the 2013
University of Havana "Women in the 21st Century IX" International Women's Conference. Specific information about the University of Havana conference and their Call for Proposals can be found
HERE. The theme of the 2013 delegation is
Women Advancing Gender Equality, Racial Justice and Sustainable Development in Cuba, and the delegation will be co-led by Jan Strout, U.S. Women and Cuba Collaboration
Co-Chair, and Zenaida Mendez, Collaboration National Advisory Board Member and NYS National Organization for Women (NOW) President.
Licensed Travel Provider: Marazul Charters will coordinate our program
Program Consultants: US Women and Cuba Collaboration
Co-sponsors: National Women’s Dominican Caucus, National Organization for Women, WILPF Cuba and Bolivarian Alliance Issues Committee
Participants: 20-25 women
Estimated Cost: $2600, which does not include round trip travel from your home city to US point of departure for Cuba
Proposed Itinerary Highlights:
Havana: University of Havana International Women's Conference, National Headquarters of the Federation of Cuban Women, Literacy Museum, Latin American Medical School, National Center for Sex Education (CENESEX), Union of Cuban Artists and Writers (UNEAC); City Tour including visits with artists and filmmakers, Museum of the Revolution and Old Havana
Las Terrazas (west of Havana): UNESCO Preserve sustainable village, Artist’s salons
Matanzas: Slave Route Museum, Arts and Culture Provincial Teachers School, Alternative Health Center
Varadero Beach: Women’s Agricultural Coop, Meetings to explore tourism and the global economy
What is Included:
RT Airfare from Miami to Havana
Double room accommodations (single supplement available for $300) with breakfast daily, other meals as indicated in the program, International Women’s Conference Registration, Cuban Visa, health insurance in Cuba, ground transportation, bi-lingual guide, experienced Trip Leaders, Cuba Study Guide, and a full research program of site visits, meetings and exchanges.
Tentative Deadlines:
Deposit and Registration due late September
Final payment due October 15
For more information about participating in this Delegation and the International Women's Conference in Havana, please visit our website for details and an application:
womenandcuba.org
End the Travel Ban
Action Item
Support Rep. Farr's Letter
to President Obama
Our colleagues at LAWG (Latin America Working Group) ask all of us to act now on the opportunity to support Representative Sam Farr (D-CA 20th) in his efforts to lobby President Obama to end the existing travel ban. Please read what they have to say below and take action by
contacting your representative today!
Remember in 2011 when we convinced President Obama to issue an executive order that liberalized the United States’ Cuba travel regulations? This action expanded general licenses for academic and religious travel and re-instated specific licenses for people-to-people travel. Well, we want to push the envelope even further this time and see President Obama grant general licenses for ALL purposeful categories of travel, doing away with the laborious license application process through the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). This would eliminate the majority of the bureaucratic red tape that prevents licensable travel to Cuba from actually happening.
Representative Sam Farr (D-CA 20th) is leading this charge by circulating a “Dear Colleague” letter to members of the House of Representatives, asking them to join him in signing a letter to the President asking just that.
Click here to read a copy of the "Dear Colleague" and the letter to President Obama.
Now is the time! A year from now will be too late, as the country will already be in “election” mode and members of Congress will be thinking about what they can and can’t do to get re-elected. Sad, but true. It won’t happen without you. Your voice is important to your member’s vote and her/his priorities.
Contact your House Representative TODAY to encourage her/him to sign on to Rep. Farr’s letter that supports granting general licenses for all of the current categories of travel to Cuba.
It is crucial that we act now to move forward with U.S.-Cuba policy before the opportunity is lost.
Sincerely,
Mavis, Emily, and Karina
LAWG’s Cuba team
The 57th UN Commission on the Status of Women was a successful occasion of networking for the Collaboration with national members and Cuban colleagues, as well as women from around the world gathered for this annual UN Commission on the Status of Women. Collaboration members, many of whom are also members of the WILPF Cuba and Bolivarian Alliance Issues Committee, were well represented at the March 5 UN CSW Parallel Event we sponsored: “Cuba after 1959: The Most Successful Literacy Campaign in Modern Day History," featuring Catherine Murphy and her film, Maestra.
Unfortunately, three invited colleagues from Cuba were unable to join us in New York for our CSW Parallel Event presentation due to visa issues which reflect the ongoing problems with US travel regulations, and with arbitrary decisions around who gets visas and who doesn't. However, representatives of the Cuba delegation to the CSW, including Maritzel Gonzales-Quevedo of the Federation of Cuban Women and Attorney Yamila Gonzalez-Ferrer of the Union of Cuban Jurists, did join us in what was a very successful standing room only CSW Parallel event that included lively discussion about the advancement of the Cuban women's rights agenda following the Cuban Revolution.
On March 4 we were able to spend an evening with the WILPF UN CSW Practicum students discussing our Parallel Event presentation topics.
Collaboration activists and leaders presented and co-sponsored additional events to coincide with the timing of CSW. "Feminists Organizing in Cuba and the US to Advance Women's Human Rights and End all Forms of Violence," on March 10, was a powerful and packed presentation at the Center for Cuban Studies. Featured Cuban guests and presenters included Dr. Norma Guillard, Cuban social psychologist (whose delayed visa finally arrived), representatives of the Federation of Cuban Women and the Union of Cuban Jurists, and dignitaries from the Cuban Mission in NY. NYC filmmaker/activist Jean Weisman led a film program featuring the US film premiere of "Principles of the Heart" (Cuba, 2012, dir: Delia Cruz). Discussion followed about the film and the work of the CSW, and CCS Director Sandra Levinson spoke about President Chavez, great friend of Cuba, whose death came earlier in the week.
An overflowing House Party fundraiser on March 10,
Mujeres y Mojitos, hosted by Collaboration National Advisory Board Member Zenaida Mendez and Jan Strout, Collaboration Co-chair, also brought together friends of Cuba and the
Collaboration and generated interest in our November Women's Research Delegation to Cuba.
And finally, thanks to the efforts of Zenaida Mendez and Manhattan Neighborhood Network, both the March 5 and 12th UN CSW-related events were recorded, cablecast on MNN and will be available soon on our YouTube channel.
Also read WILPF Peace Woman E-News reflections on CSW 57
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Visit our website at http://www.womenandcuba.org for updated information on women and Cuba, our campaigns, our work, and donation information.
If you can make a donation to support the work of our organization, any amount, large or small, will be greatly appreciated!
In the spirit of friendship and solidarity,
Carydad, Cindy, Jan, Kamilah, Michelle, Moon and Victoria
