U.S. WOMEN AND CUBA COLLABORATION

Global feminism and the power of advancing global women’s human rights were robustly manifest during the 68th Session of the UN CSW meetings in NY, March 10-22, 2024. Activists from the US Women and Cuba Collaboration and US WILPF’s Cuba and Bolivarian Alliance Issues Committee were active participants in NY to help advance the UN Women’s agenda for this 2024 Session: Accelerating the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls by addressing poverty and strengthening institutions and financing with a gender perspective. We presented a Parallel Events virtual webinar, participated in the National Cities for CEDAW Advisory Board, LGBTQIA+ Caucus, International US-Cuba Normalization Conference, WILPF actions, US Women’s Caucus of the UN, and were present for numerous workshops, celebrations, rallies, receptions, happy hours, informal gatherings, and a field trip to the Cuban Art Space to meet with its director/founder Sandy Levinson.  

 

We heard powerful evidence that many women, especially from the Global South, do so much with great challenges and small resources to change their lives and claim their human rights.  Gender-based violence in all forms was addressed, as well as micro-and macro-economic strategies and best practices, at forums often led by young feminists. Stand-out topics included the Latin American Green Wave Abortion rights movements, ending FGM, supports for health and childcare, LGBTQ+ rights, and how women’s and girls’ equality is deeply connected to economic security and robust human rights, all concerns that require structural and systemic changes along with funding and other resources.

 

We came to NGO CSW68 in part to advance our mission: to build a strong US women’s movement dedicated to ending the US government blockade of Cuba based in universal human rights, racial and economic justice and women’s human rights. Toward this end, we presented a virtual workshop on gender equality in Cuba, spotlighting members of Cuba’s official delegation to CSW68. Our webinar, Ending the US Government Blockade: The Road to Full Equality for Cuban Women, focused on the advancements for women and LGBTQI+ people under the wide-ranging 2022 Cuban Families Code, and featured outstanding presentations by leaders of the Federation of Cuban Women and Cuba’s Democratic Federation of Women, and by women in leadership of the US Women & Cuba Collaboration, WILPF, and other US women’s organizations, as well as involvement by over 10 co-sponsoring NGO organizations. 

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See webinar flyer HERE

View the webinar recording HERE

 

At CSW68 we connected with key Cuban women’s rights activists and lesbian groups as part of our commitment to our Realities of Cuban Women’s Lives Campaign, which focuses the voices of  Cuban women speaking for themselves in the context of harsh economic impacts due to the unjust US Government blockade of Cuba and the apocryphal assignment of Cuba to the US list of State Sponsors of Terrorism. Cuban women’s creativity and resilience and resistance to these life challenges is inspiring and highly educational for all. Our major CSW goal to educate, expand, diversify and organize includes Calls to Action from reports by members:

 

Moon Vazquez and Deb Goldman, Co-chairs, Lesbians & Allies Project, US Women & Cuba Collaboration

 

1. Join us to grow our base of members and workers for the L&A Project, and to link to LGBTQIA+ allies globally who will attend CSW69.

Participation in the LGBTQIA+ Caucus, now renamed the Rainbow Caucus, was a main focus of our work at CSW58. Women from countries around the world discussed issues affecting their lives and human rights (some never realized, some, as in the US, lost), and their fears for safety under oppression. The Caucus committed itself to plan for further work at CSW69, and I am honored I will be Co-chair the 2025 Caucus. 

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2. Be part of actions to educate and lobby about the importance of ending the US Blockade against Cuba and of removing Cuba from the US list of state sponsors of terrorism. 

Help us work to #LETCUBALIVE. We must end the blockade and remove Cuba from the state sponsors of terrorism list so they can engage freely in trade and business with US trading partners now prohibited from free trade with Cuba. 

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3. Join our work to learn and educate about Cuba’s long history of leadership in LGBTQIA+ and women’s rights.

Cuba’s legal and educational approaches to full equity for women across the wide spectrum of gender diversity can teach us so much. Cuba has created and passed by popular referendum a legal code that includes protection of the right of all people to form a family without discrimination, that updates the legal definition of family institutions, with inclusive rather than strictly heteronormative models, that establishes the right to a family life free from violence, that treats children as the responsibility of their parents rather than as possessions, and that centers values of love, affection, solidarity, and responsibility.

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See Moon’s full CSW Report HERE

Lesbians and Allies Project YouTube
Email: lesbiansandallies.gmail.com

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Cynthia Roberts, Member, Cuba & the Bolivarian Alliance Committee, WILPF-US

 

1. Become members of WILPF and US Women and Cuba Collaboration and other women’s organizations. Be or recruit the youth and all age women our organizations need to flourish.

At CSW sessions and the WILPF UN office, it was inspiring to see the involvement of youth leaders, and learn of WILPFs intent to expand the youth cohort interns at upcoming CSWs. Connecting with other WILPF members was a CSW goal, to share strategies for renewing local US branches that sometimes went dormant in Covid and to build our membership. WILPF has for over 100 years been comprised of women who are making this world a better place, and building its future is exciting work.

 

2. Join our work to Remove Cuba from US list of State Sponsors of Terrorism.

Founded in 1915 to organize for international peace and freedom, WILPF works to end all violence. CSW68 was an opportunity to share information regarding false claims by the US that Cuba belongs on its list of State Sponsors of Terrorism, part of the US government's policy against normalizing relations with Cuba. The global effects are economically devastating for Cuba, creating harm to Cuban lives that is a violence, separately and combined with the long-standing Blockade.

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See Cynthia’s full CSW Report HERE

WILPF Cuba & Bolivarian Alliance Issues Committee

 

 

In conclusion, the UN Secretary General’s summation with calls to action of the 2024 UN CSW Session makes a powerful case for achieving gender and all equality by addressing worldwide specific intersectional needs of women and girls in all of our diversity. 

We Must Push Governments, Private Sector to Fund Equal Rights, Opportunities for Women, Girls

 

Please enjoy this report and our webinar video (see video HERE), and we encourage you to be inspired to join us and support us for the next steps of our work! See our contact information below, and we hope you will save the dates for UN CSW69 in 2025, which will mark the 30th anniversary of the 1995 Beijing World Conference on Women and its visionary Beijing Platform for Action!

 

In solidarity,

Cindy, Leni, Jan, Moon, Cynthia, Deb, Kathryn, Catherine, Ellen, Victoria

US Women and Cuba Collaboration Steering Committee, Cindy Domingo, Chair

US Women and Cuba Collaboration

WILPF-US Cuba & Bolivarian Alliance Committee, Cindy Domingo & Leni Villagomez Reeves, Co-chairs

WILPF Cuba & Bolivarian Alliance Issues Committee