Cargando...Trade unions, solidarity activists, and health professionals in Los Angeles, California, organized a shipment of medical supplies valued at one million dollars bound for Cuba. The purpose is to support the health system, especially in caring for the victims of Melissa, the hurricane that last October severely affected several provinces in the eastern part of the country.
The initiative, announced by Dr. Uriel Ramírez, activist of the Hands Off Cuba Committee of Los Angeles (LAHOC) and member of the Pan-American Medical Organization, included the participation of union members from ILWU-IBU and IAM, LAHOC activists, graduates of the Latin American School of Medicine (ELAM), and members of the organization Not Just Tourists.
The shipment, which includes nearly 200 types of medicines and medical supplies—among them water purification tablets, rehydration packets, sutures, cannulas, intravenous fluids, painkillers, and antipyretics—will first travel to Jacksonville, Florida, where it will be placed in a 40-foot container scheduled to depart on December 21 toward the port of Mariel.
According to reports, the solidarity action was coordinated by organizations supporting Cuba, including the Pan-American Medical Association, Global Health Partners, Not Just Tourists, and LAHOC, in response to the needs generated by the hurricane, which caused severe damage to housing, electrical networks, and basic services, as well as an urgent demand for healthcare.
The Hands Off Cuba Committee of Los Angeles, as reflected by the newspaper Trabajadores, has maintained sustained solidarity work with the Island. Over the past five years, it has participated in humanitarian aid shipments, exchanges with Cuban trade unions, and actions against the blockade, in addition to systematically taking part in May Day celebrations with delegations of labor and youth activists.
LAHOC also promotes the campaign Let Cuba Play, which calls on the U.S. Government to grant visas to Cuban athletes for international competitions in the Olympic cycle, defending the right to sport and opposing its use as a tool of political pressure.
