Effects of the US blockade on Cuba are visible everywhere, says activist

 MATANZAS, Cuba, Jul 22 (ACN) Everywhere I look I see the harmful effects of the U.S. blockade of Cuba, commented Shannon Rodriguez, member of the 32nd Caravan of Friendship of Pastors for Peace, which has been visiting the province of Matanzas since Thursday.

I am moved because it is not that they cannot do it, it is that because of the blockade (economic, commercial and financial) Cubans do not have access to things they need to do, said Rodriguez as a witness of the impact of the U.S. policy that limits the Cuban development.

It is very difficult for me to be certain that the U.S. government does not have the compassion or the heart that those of us who were born in that country have," said the member of the New York Boricua Resistance organization, who is visiting Cuba for the first time.

The young human rights defender also said that in Matanzas she feels very identified as an artist, being so close to the water, listening to the music, and seeing the landscape.

This Friday the Pastors for Peace visited the 13 de Marzo Agricultural Production Cooperative in the municipality of Unión de Reyes, where they were interested in biological methods to deal with pests, crop rotation systems, the impact of climate change and the participation of women in the operation of the entity.

At the Museum of the Rebel Slave, in Triunvirato, they learned about one of the most important uprisings that took place in Cuba during the colonial period, the presence of African culture on the island, and the confrontation of racial discrimination.

Also this Friday, the Muñequitos de Matanzas, a distinguished group in the defense of rumba, which celebrates its 70th anniversary in 2022, offered an artistic welcome to the members of the caravan that arrived at the social house of writers and artists in this city.

We are committed to maintaining our friendship and understanding of Cuba, and we are also very excited about Cuban culture, which is very special, and we will continue in solidarity with you," said Gail Walker, executive director of the Interfaith Foundation for Community Organizing, to which the Pastors for Peace Caravan belongs.