Cuba Solidarity Day – March 21
A Call to Action, Compassion, and Common Sense
Right now, Cuba is facing an intensifying crisis worse than ever before because of policy and power-hungry politicians on both sides. The embargo on basic necessities is nothing new, but now there is an ongoing blockade on oil shipments by the Trump regime and it’s a crime against humanity.
The blockade of fuel is deepening daily hardship across the island, where people have been suffering for over 60 years now due to both the U.S. and Cuba’s stubbornness and inability to find a common solution for the good of the people.
This isn’t just a public service announcement—it’s also personal. My 88-year-old cousin is struggling to access basic necessities like food and medicine. Over the years that I’ve visited her she gets thinner and thinner, and cries when she sees the supplies I have brought for her which usually can only last a couple months.
Friends in Cuba are dealing with prolonged blackouts, transportation breakdowns, and even more shortages on food a medicine that need electricity for preservation, plus the blackouts make it impossible for them to work and earn money.
As much as I and many others want to see the US just lift the embargo and feed the people, at the same time, it’s important to be clear: supporting the Cuban people means supporting both meaningful political change and immediate humanitarian relief. AKA – an acceptance that the Revolucion has failed, and an end to authoritarian communism.
People should not have to choose between freedom and survival. The current system in Cuba has led to serious restrictions and hardships for most, and long-term change is way past due—but that change cannot and should not come through the torture and suffering of innocent people through deprivation of basic human rights.
We can hold both truths at once:
- The Cuban people deserve freedom and reform from communism
- The Cuban people should not be made to suffer in the process
When fuel is restricted, everything slows or stops. Hospitals strain. Food spoils. The people suffer. This is not a theoretical policy debate—it’s a humanitarian reality impacting millions of innocent people. And it needs to stop.
A Political Standoff Paid at the Price of People’s Lives
What we’re seeing in Cuba is a prolonged political standoff between the U.S. and Cuban governments —each holding firm, each unwilling to yield, and both ultimately passing the cost onto everyday citizens without the slightest care for their wellbeing.
U.S. policy, especially under the Trump administration and figures like Marco Rubio (a Cuban American BTW), has leaned heavily on economic pressure with the stated goal of forcing political reform in Cuba. In practice, this has meant tightening restrictions in ways that worsen shortages and instability.
In short, my opinion is — the U.S. government thinks that by starving the country’s people, the Cuban government will give in to their demands to reform, to save them. Except the Cuban government still thinks that their policies are helping them, but maybe more so, they just don’t want to give up all the money they make and don’t have to share, and they care more about that and power than the actual people, so it’s a lose-lose situation for the people. Fidel himself might have cared a little bit about the Cuban people. But everyone else in that government does not.
So, at the same time, the Cuban government continues to resist external pressure while maintaining internal systems that many argue also need reform. It is said that they resist reform because they know that if they give in, the US and other countries will just come in, buy everything, takeover, cause severe inequality, and basically turn it back into the “Las Vegas of the Caribbean” like it was before the Revolution.
But something that needs to be pointed out with their “Revolution” is that the goal was to make everyone equal, and right now that is not even happening. The government is rich while all the people are poor, and those with American relatives who actually help them (not Rubio), are the middle class. So the majority of people are just equally-poor. But the government still refuses to reform.
The result is a deadlock—and the local people are caught in the middle.
But what if there is a better path forward? What if there could be:
- Gradual reform within Cuba
- Gradual lifting of the U.S. embargo
- Serious diplomatic negotiation instead of economic pressure
Humanitarian relief should never be used as leverage. Perhaps we need more empathetic people (like women) in office to make these things happen.
Join in on March 21: Global Cuba Solidarity Day and Convoy
On March 21, a growing international movement—the Nuestra América Convoy—will mobilize across continents in coordinated actions to deliver aid in Cuba and demand policy change
What’s happening:
- A global, coordinated humanitarian convoy effort
- Actions across North America, Latin America, and Europe
- Deliveries of aid by land, sea, and air
Hundreds, if not thousands of people from all over the world are expected to meet at the Malecon in Havana, to deliver aid to the people, and protest the US’s illegal blockage of fuel, as well as reform within the Cuban government.
How to participate:
- Join a local convoy or solidarity action
- Organize a visibility action in your community
- Amplify messaging online using coordinated hashtags and messaging below and share other people’s posts
- Support logistics and fundraising efforts if you can
Where to Donate: Trusted Organizations Supporting People in Cuba
If you want your contribution to directly reach people, try to find people who are physically going to Cuba this weekend. It might be too late for it, but you can still donate to organizations who send aid ongoing.
- CODEPINK – Female run donation initiative
- Give2Cuba – Direct support for food, medicine, and essentials
- Support the Cuban People – Focused on vulnerable populations
- Hope for Cuba Foundation – Humanitarian aid and supply distribution
- Catholic Relief Services (CRS) – Established aid network on the ground
- CARE International – Food security and community resilience
- Together for Cuba – Support for children and families
Tip: Financial donations are often the fastest way to get help to people, but it needs to be sent to people and organizations while they are still in the US or other countries so they can buy the items there and bring them — remember, food is scarce IN Cuba.
What to Donate (If You’re Bringing or Sending Supplies)
Money is typically best to send if you cannot go bring the items yourself. If you can go, below are the most needed items!
Non-perishable food:
- Re-sealable packages of high protein foods like lentils and quinoa
- Packages or cans (packages are easier to transport) of tuna and sardines (high protein and nutrients)
- Oatmeal, rice, grains
- Seasoning (all-seasoning, Sazon, garlic salt)
- Protein powder, vitamin/electrolyte mix
- Powdered milk, for adults and babies
- Coffee, powdered chocolate (especially with added nutrients)
*NOTE: meats and fruits are not allowed to be imported and they check bags at the airport.
Medical supplies and over-the-counter medications
- Antibiotics if possible
- Pain relief (pills and also lidocaine patches)
- Antihistamines
- Stomach meds (antacid, gas relief, digestion relief)
Hygiene products
- Toothpaste/toothbrush
- Soap, shampoo, conditioner
- Feminine pads
Lights and Energy
- Solar powered batteries, lights, anything
- Batteries (AA, AAA, D)
- Lanterns and flashlights
Put Pressure Where It Counts
Policy change requires public pressure—on both sides. Remember, this isn’t just about a temporary fix to get food and medicine there like a bandaid. We need actual change like a surgery, that will fix the problem and last forever.
U.S. Officials to Contact & Tag
- @POTUS
- @WhiteHouse
- @StateDept
- @SecRubio
- @USTreasury
- @SenateDems @SenateGOP
- @HouseDemocrats @HouseGOP
Cuban Government Accounts
- @DiazCanelB (President Miguel Díaz-Canel)
- @CubaMINREX (Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
- @GobiernoCuba (Official government account)
Message Template (Copy / Paste)
English:
Stop torturing the Cuban people—haven’t they suffered enough?
USA: End restrictions on fuel, food, and medicine NOW without demanding a takeover. CUBA: End imprisonment of people through communism
We support BOTH real freedom (an end to authoritarian communism) AND immediate humanitarian relief.
These power-driven governments must choose empathy over control—people over politics.
We demand peaceful negotiation, gradual reform in Cuba, and a gradual lifting of the embargo—WITHOUT exploitation or takeover.
No more suffering as a political tool!
Español:
Dejen de torturar al pueblo cubano—no han sufrido lo suficiente?
Terminen YA con las restricciones al combustible, alimentos y medicinas.
Apoyamos TANTO la libertad real (incluyendo el fin del comunismo autoritario) COMO la ayuda humanitaria inmediata.
Los gobiernos enfocados en el poder deben elegir la empatía sobre el control—las personas sobre la política.
Exigimos negociación pacífica, reformas graduales en Cuba y un levantamiento gradual del embargo—sin explotación ni intervención.
No más sufrimiento como herramienta política.
How to Amplify
- Tag both U.S. and Cuban officials
- Tag me if you want and I’ll reshare it (@mylifesatravelmovie)
- Use hashtags:
#EndTheEmbargo #CubaSolidarity #LetCubaLive #March21ForCuba #CubaNeedsRelief - Share real stories and impacts – Hit the “re-share” button and also share to your stories
- Emphasize BOTH messages:
- Support reform and greater freedoms in Cuba
- Demand immediate humanitarian relief and an end to collective punishment
This Is About People
This is about elders like my cousin. It’s about families trying to cook without fuel, hospitals trying to function without electricity, and communities trying to survive under pressure they did not choose.
People should not be forced to suffer in order to prove political points—by any government.
March 21 is not just symbolic—it’s a chance to act.
Show up. Speak out. Send support.
Because real solidarity means standing for both dignity and survival.
