US Activists Face Harassment From Authorities Upon Return From Cuba
By Peoples Dispatch / Globetrotter News Service
On May 7, several participants in the May Day Brigade of the U.S.-based National Network on Cuba (NNOC), were detained and harassed by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol upon arrival to the United States from Cuba.
Similarly, on May 3, over a dozen people who had traveled to Cuba as part of a 10-day international youth delegation faced similar treatment from U.S. authorities during their return to the country.
For the NNOC, the incidents faced by U.S.-based activists on May 3 and 7 constitute “an onslaught against Cuba solidarity activism.”
The People’s Forum, one of the organizations that participated in the solidarity brigade of young people organized by the International Peoples’ Assembly, condemned the harassment faced by delegation members at U.S. airports. It affirmed, “We will not be moved! Our commitment to end the U.S. [blockade] of Cuba will only grow”
The NNOC also released a public statement following the detention of their delegates, emphasizing that “In face of persecution, we reaffirm our right to travel to Cuba. Solidarity is not a crime—the U.S. blockade is!” They added that several of the people who were detained by CBP also had their electronics seized and some were even threatened with jail time.
Source: The Peoples Dispatch / Globetrotter News Service
