The Riverside Church in Harlem has been known for it's welcoming of revolutionaries and humanists in a country that provides no refuge for those standing up for the oppressed. Leaders such as Fidel Castro, Cesar Chavez, Nelson Mandel, and on September 27th, 2018, both President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela and President Miguel Diaz-Canel of Cuba have spoken at the church inspiring the huddled masses of New York City with revolutionary fervor and a call for international oppressed solidarity.
Over 2,000 people showed up to the event. It was a ticketed event and ID was mandatory but that didn't stop late comers from trying to get in anyway. Univision, one of the few Latin American networks of which are all right-wing and racist, came and taunted those waiting in line to see President Diaz-Canel.
After an hour of waiting on line and many security checks later, I was finally able to get a decent seat with some comrades in the front half of the audience seating. The vast majority of the audience were Black and Brown folks filling the room with excitement with their Che Guevara shirts and Cuban flags.
I missed the portion of the Cuban National Anthem however I made it back in time from the bathroom to see The Healing Drum Collective give libations. I learned that in Fidel Castro's visit to the Riverside Church in 2000, he had promised that Cuba would sponsor groups of med students in the US to Cuba's Escuela Latino Americana de Medicina/Latin American Institute of Medicine (ELAM) on full scholarships with one condition, after the students graduate, they must spend time working in underserved and oppressed communities in the US. Two graduating students from New York City gave a speech on their experiences and the institution and thanked Cuba for their dedication to the international working-class movement.
After this, suddenly crowds of people in the front jumped to their feet and started cheering "Maduro!"
Over 2,000 people showed up to the event. It was a ticketed event and ID was mandatory but that didn't stop late comers from trying to get in anyway. Univision, one of the few Latin American networks of which are all right-wing and racist, came and taunted those waiting in line to see President Diaz-Canel.
After an hour of waiting on line and many security checks later, I was finally able to get a decent seat with some comrades in the front half of the audience seating. The vast majority of the audience were Black and Brown folks filling the room with excitement with their Che Guevara shirts and Cuban flags.
I missed the portion of the Cuban National Anthem however I made it back in time from the bathroom to see The Healing Drum Collective give libations. I learned that in Fidel Castro's visit to the Riverside Church in 2000, he had promised that Cuba would sponsor groups of med students in the US to Cuba's Escuela Latino Americana de Medicina/Latin American Institute of Medicine (ELAM) on full scholarships with one condition, after the students graduate, they must spend time working in underserved and oppressed communities in the US. Two graduating students from New York City gave a speech on their experiences and the institution and thanked Cuba for their dedication to the international working-class movement.
After this, suddenly crowds of people in the front jumped to their feet and started cheering "Maduro!"
You can hear the crowd begins to chant "Chavez Vive! La lucha sigue!" This event turned out to be a historical moment in New York City that I had the privilege of being able to witness
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If you wanna argue about communism, im not interested.