Cuban residents in Tampa took to the streets this Sunday to demand the end of the regime and freedom for Cuba, in a caravan of vehicles that traversed the city with Cuban and American flags, slogans such as "Free Cuba" and "Homeland and Life," and support for the political prisoners on the island.
The mobilization, covered by Cántalo TV and shared on social media, gathered dozens of vehicles—pickups, SUVs, and sedans—whose drivers and passengers expressed their opposition to repression, the lack of rights, and the crisis facing Cuba.
One of the vehicles had written on the windshield "Cuba State 51", a symbolic expression of the desire of some exiles to see Cuba integrated into the United States.
José I. Oliva Gil, one of the organizers, celebrated the outcome on his social media: "Today, Tampa makes history!! Countless free Cubans attended today's caravan, I am grateful for every shout, every tear, and every wish to see Cuba free, it was a total success."
Cántalo TV summarized the message from the participants: "The demand was clear: freedom for the Cuban people and an end to the injustices that have marked life on the island for decades."
The Tampa caravan is part of a wave of mobilizations by the Cuban exile community that spread throughout March in various cities across the United States and Europe.
Among the most notable events is a massive caravan in Miami from Tropical Park to the Ermita de la Caridad, with over a thousand participants demanding that Donald Trump and Marco Rubio exert "maximum pressure" against the regime, and the Free Cuba Rally held on March 24 at Milander Park in Hialeah, featuring José Daniel Ferrer, Rosa María Payá, and Yotuel Romero.
The slogan "Cuba Next!" resonated at several of these events, referring to the hope that Cuba will be the next country to free itself from communism.
The backdrop of these demonstrations is the severe crisis facing the island: blackouts of up to twenty hours a day affecting 64% of the territory, shortages of food, medicine, and water, and a GDP decline of 23% since 2019.
Since March sixth, street protests and pot-banging events have been reported in Havana, Morón, and other Cuban localities, with at least 14 detainees reported by Cubalex as of March 13.
Tampa has a long history of Cuban activism: on July 12, 2021, a day after the historic 11J, Cuban exiles protested in the streets with the slogan "Today the dictatorship is over," and its roots in the Cuban cause date back to the 19th century, when Cuban tobacco workers founded Ybor City as a center to support Cuba’s independence.
Filed under: