OMNI: CUBA NEWSLETTER #6

 

OMNI

CUBA NEWSLETTER #6

February 23, 2021

Compiled by Dick Bennett for a CULTURE OF PEACE and Justice.

(#1 Feb. 4, 2011; #2 Oct. 21, 2012; #3 Nov. 29, 2014; #4, January 16, 2015; #5, March 8, 2020).

http://omnicenter.org/donate/

 

Please forward.

 

CONTENTS

US Criticism of Cuba

Cuba’s Achievements (see Yaffe at end)

 

 

 

 

 

 

US CRITICISM OF CUBA

 

What media moguls don’t want you to know: Youtube and Google attack Cuba and Venezuela (8-26-21)

 

On Aug. 20, just ahead of programming about the start of clinical trials for Cuba’s COVID-19 vaccine, Soberana-01, YouTube management disabled Mesa Redonda’s channel. Mesa Redonda (Roundtable) airs Monday through Friday evenings on Cuban national television.  | more…

Rubio, Cruz bill would deem Cuba’s medical missions “human trafficking operation”  8-26-21   In an act of pure hypocrisy and obsessive cruelty, GOP Senators Marco Rubio, Rick Scott and Ted Cruz joined together to penalize developing nations who seek to take advantage of Cuba’s hands-on humanitarian work.  | more…

 

 

 

U.S. campaign against Cuba’s medical brigades targets healthcare, not ‘forced labor’.  Mronline.org (6-4-20).

For decades, Cuba has sent tens of thousands of its medical professionals abroad to work in countries where natural disasters or poverty have left people without healthcare. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the catastrophic U.S. response to it, the absurdity of a propaganda war against Cuban medical missions has become more obvious […]  | more…    

 

OPINION – EDITORIAL
“Cuba Libre!

When something’s not working . . .”   NADG (November 16, 2018)

It's no secret that agriculture makes up a good chunk of our state's economy. We keep growing food, and folks in other states and countries keep eating it. (Amazing how that works.) But farmers in Arkansas are a bit restricted at the moment when it comes to one particular market: a police state of note in a certain island country a few miles south of Florida's coast…(continued https://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2018/nov/16/cuba-libre-20181116/ )

 

Castro's death stirs rejoicing in Miami

“U.S. Cubans say suffering can end now.”  Compiled by Democrat-Gazette staff from wire reports | November 27, 2016

https://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2016/nov/27/castro-s-death-stirs-rejoicing-20161127-1/

Cuban-Americans took to the streets Saturday morning in Miami as news spread that Fidel Castro, the father of the Cuban revolution and a man who prompted many to flee the island, leaving behind homes and family members, had died overnight at 90.

 

 

 

 

CUBA’S ACHIEVEMENTS—MAINLY MEDICAL

 

Partners: China and Cuba.  Mronline.org (2-23-21).

In the 1960s, the main forms of the Chinese assistance offered to Cuba were preferential trade and interest-free loans. From 1961 to 1965, China gave Cuba an interest-free loan of 60 million U.S. dollars.  | more…

 

 

 

Don’t You Mess With Cuba – video.  Mronline.org (1-3-21). 

World Premiere!!!..…subtitled version of the video clip “Don’t You Mess With Cuba”  | more…

 

 

 

Why Cuban doctors deserve the Nobel Peace Prize.  Mronline.org (8-26-20). U.S. allies in Latin America, such as Brazil, Bolivia, and Ecuador, expelled the Cuban medical missions. This would become a catastrophic decision for these countries as the COVID-19 pandemic developed across Latin America.  | more…

 

Cuba’s vaccine candidate “Sovereign” is all set to enter clinical trials (8-26-20).

Cuba’s vaccine candidate is the first from the Latin America and the Caribbean region and marks a continuation of its pioneering work in combating COVID-19 across the world.  | more…

 

 

 

 

Cuba in the last stretch of the Pandemic.  Popular Resistance.org (7-18-20)

Cuba is only a few days away from ending its coronavirus quarantine. Except for Havana, all the other provinces are free of the contagion and have begun moving toward a new normality.  | more… 

[Compare to Laos and Vietnam.  –D]

 

new from Monthly Review Press Cuban Health Care  The Ongoing Revolution by Don Fitz.  2020. “This is the best written and most accurate work published in years about the history and recent achievements of Cuban health care. The book gives inspiration for people around the world concerned about the future of health care and health itself.” —Howard Waitzkin, Distinguished Professor Emeritus, University of New Mexico; coordinator, Health Care Under the Knife: Moving Beyond Capitalism for Our Health “An extraordinary book about an extraordinary health care system.” —Dr. Steffie Woolhandler, Distinguished Professor of Public Health, City University of New York; co-founder, Physicians for a National Health Program “Where climate change, pandemics, and rampant chronic disease threaten human and planetary health, Don Fitz’s new book serves as a road map for how to shift the paradigm towards a more equitable, humanistic health care.” —Conner Gorry, Senior Editor, MEDICC Review; founder, Cuba Libro “Puts Cuba’s commitment to medical internationalism into context by outlining the history of the small island nation where poverty and disease were once rampant and telling the story of how, against all odds, it built a world class health care system and made it available to some of the poorest nations of the world.” —Gail Walker, Executive Director, IFCO/Pastors for Peace “Essential reading for any seeking to understand how this small country has such an enviable record at home (better in many aspects than the US system, and at a fraction of the cost), while leading the world in medical internationalism.” —John M. Kirk, Professor of Latin American Studies, Dalhousie University, Canada   American and Cuban medical leaders could learn from each other, if they spent the time to speak and truly listen. Don Fitz has written a well-referenced book, and his words deserve a broad audience!” —Gary M. Gaddis, MD, PhD; Professor of Emergency Medicine, Washington University, Saint Louis School of Medicine Quiet as it’s kept inside the United States, the Cuban revolution has achieved some phenomenal goals, reclaiming Cuba’s agriculture, advancing its literacy rate to nearly 100 percent—and remaking its medical system. Cuba has transformed its health care to the extent that this “third-world” country has been able to maintain a first-world medical system, whose health indicators surpass those of the United States at a fraction of the cost. Don Fitz combines his broad knowledge of Cuban history with his decades of on-the-ground experience in Cuba to bring us the story of how Cuba’s health care system evolved and how Cuba is tackling the daunting challenges to its revolution in this century. Fitz weaves together complex themes in Cuban history, moving the reader from one fascinating story to another. He describes how Cuba was able to create a unified system of clinics, and evolved the family doctor-nurse teams that became a model for poor countries throughout the world. How, in the 1980s and ‘90s, Cuba survived the encroachment of AIDS and increasing suffering that came with the collapse of the Soviet Union, and then went on to establish the Latin American School of Medicine, which still brings thousands of international students to the island. Deeply researched, recounted with compassion, Cuban Health Care tells a story you won’t find anywhere else, of how, in terms of caring for everyday people, Cuba’s revolution continues. 296 pages | $26 pbk order online here   Don Fitz is is a member of the editorial board of Green Social Thought and newsletter editor for the Green Party of St. Louis. He contributes frequently to Monthly Review magazine.

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CUBA AND CORONAVIRUS-19

Cuban doctors arrive in Italy - short vid

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rd039yrRLuA

 

Turin grants honorary citizenship to head of Cuban medical brigade (+ Photos).  Mronline.org (7-17-20).

The Municipal Council of Turin granted the honorary citizenship of that city in the region of Piedmont to Dr. Julio Guerra, head of the Cuban medical brigade that helped fight COVID-19 there.  | more…

 

 

 

 

Can we simultaneously oppose Bayer/Monsanto’s biotechnology and support Cuba’s Interferon Alpha 2B? mronline.org (5-14-20). 

Technology reflects social factors throughout its development and use. Genetically engineered crops allow mega-corporations to patent seeds, lure farmers into buying them with visions of high yields, and then destroy small farmers. Cuba’s drugs are shared throughout the world. Making a distinction between the biotechnology of agro-industry and Cuba requires understanding the difference between bioimperialism […]  | more…

 

 

During Coronvrius: Cuba to the rescue, but don’t tell the American people.  mronline.org (4-29-20)

Anti-Cuba zealots in the Trump administration have been enticing Cuban doctors working overseas to defect, paying journalists to write negative stories, slapping sanctions on Cubans in charge of the program, and strong-arming countries to expel Cuban doctors.  | more…

 

 

 

 

Cuba: from AIDS, Dengue, and Ebola to COVID-19.  mronline.org (4-14-20)   Cuba’s preparation for COVID-19 began on January 1, 1959. On that day, it laid the foundations for what would become the discovery of novel drugs, bringing patients to the island, and sending medical aid abroad. Coping with HIV/AIDS, dengue fever and Ebola helped Cuba develop the ability to cope with pandemics, both internally and abroad.  | more…

 

 

 

 

 

Amid Coronavirus Pandemic, Bolsonaro’s Brazil Begs For Cuban Doctors – After Expelling Them

By Ben Norton, The Grayzone.  Popular Resistance (3-22-20).  The coronavirus pandemic has overwhelmed the health infrastructure of countries around the world. Desperate to contain the deadly virus, hard-hit countries, including even rich European nations like Italy and Britain, have reached out for expert medical help from Cuba, China, and Venezuela. Even Brazil, currently under the control of a far-right administration that has joined the US in demonizing Cuba’s socialist government... -more-

 

Cuba And The Concept Of Community Of Nations

By Bill Hackwell, Resumen Latinoamericano.

Popular Resistance (3-22-20).  Some years ago I was talking to a Cuban doctor about what a remarkable achievement it was that Cuba was able to eliminate Malaria in 1973. He took the discussion in stride and said that it didn’t mean much until we eradicate Malaria in the entire world. Today Cuba is proving once again that their view of health and battling diseases is one that is global in scope and despite living under the unilateral 60-year-old US blockade, with additional sanctions coming their way daily... -more

 

Cuba & COVID-19: Its contribution to combatting the disease

Justice Initiative via uark.onmicrosoft.com   3-19-20	12:35 PM (2 hours ago)
to James

 

JUSTICE INITIATIVE   Cuba's Contribution to Combatting COVID-19   by HELEN YAFFE March 17, 2020   Counterpunch  [See other articles on Cuba by Yaffe:  https://www.counterpunch.org/author/helyal0912/ ] COVID-19 surged in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late December 2019 and by January 2020 it had hit Hubei province like a tidal wave, swirling over China and rippling out overseas. The Chinese state rolled into action to combat the spread and care for those infected. Among the 30 medicines the Chinese National Health Commission selected to fight the virus was a Cuban anti-viral drug Interferon Alpha 2b. This drug has been produced in China since 2003, by the enterprise ChangHeber, a Cuban-Chinese joint venture. Cuban Interferon Alpha 2b has proven effective for viruses with characteristics similar to those of COVID-19. Cuban biotech specialist, Dr Luis Herrera Martinez explained that 'its use prevents aggravation and complications in patients, reaching that stage that ultimately can result in death.' Cuba first developed and used interferons to arrest a deadly outbreak of the dengue virus in 1981, and the experience catalysed the development of the island's now world-leading biotech industry. The world's first biotechnology enterprise, Genetech, was founded in San Francisco in 1976, followed by AMGen in Los Angeles in 1980. One year later, the Biological Front, a professional interdisciplinary forum, was set up to develop the industry in Cuba. While most developing countries had little access to the new technologies (recombinant DNA, human gene therapy, biosafety), Cuban biotechnology expanded and took on an increasingly strategic role in both the public health sector and the national economic development plan. It did so despite the US blockade obstructing access to technologies, equipment, materials, finance and even knowledge exchange. Driven by public health demand, it has been characterised by the fast track from research and innovation to trials and application, as the story of Cuban interferon shows. MORE  https://www.counterpunch.org/author/helyal0912/   IThis article draws on material in my new book, We Are Cuba! How a revolutionary people have survived in a post-Soviet world. Chapter 5 deals with 'The curious case of Cuba's biotech revolutionary'. Available here.   About Helen Yaffe Helen Yaffe is a lecturer in Economic and Social History at the University of Glasgow, specialising in Cuban and Latin American development. She is the author of Che Guevara: The Economics of Revolution and co-author with Gavin Brown of Youth Activism and Solidarity: the Non-Stop Picket against Apartheid. Her forthcoming book We Are Cuba! How a Revolutionary People have survived in a Post-Soviet World will be published in spring 2020.

Helen Yaffe.  We Are Cuba! How a Revolutionary People Have Survived in a Post-Soviet World.  Yale UP, 2020.

View InsideFormat: Hardcover
 

The extraordinary account of the Cuban people’s struggle for survival in a post-Soviet world

In the aftermath of the fall of the Soviet Union, Cuba faced the start of a crisis that decimated its economy. Helen Yaffe examines the astonishing developments that took place during and beyond this period. Drawing on archival research and interviews with Cuban leaders, thinkers, and activists, this book tells for the first time the remarkable story of how Cuba survived while the rest of the Soviet bloc crumbled.
 
Yaffe shows how Cuba has been gradually introducing select market reforms. While the government claims that these are necessary to sustain its socialist system, many others believe they herald a return to capitalism. Examining key domestic initiatives including the creation of one of the world’s leading biotechnological industries, its energy revolution, and medical internationalism alongside recent economic reforms, Yaffe shows why the revolution will continue post-Castro.

This is a fresh, compelling account of Cuba’s socialist revolution and the challenges it faces today.

 

 

Mar 27, 2020,

 

 

 

 

PREVIOUS NUMBERS OF CUBA NEWSLETTERS

CONTENTS CUBA NEWSLETTER #5

https://jamesrichardbennett.blogspot.com/2020/03/omni-cuba-newsletter-5-march-8-2020.html

 

History

Jane Franklin, Cuba and the U.S. Empire.  2016.
Tony Perrorret.  “Cuba Libre.”  Victorious Castro on the Ed Sullivan Show.

Two Histories 2018

   Brown, Cuba’s Revolutionary World

   Krujit, Cuba and Revolutionary Latin America

Castro and Obama

From Obama to Trump

Trump, Venezuela, Cuba

International Solidarity with Cuba

 

US Oppression of Cuba

Lamrani, The Economic War against Cuba

ANSWER, US Counter-Revolution v. Cuba

Trump Administration Examples

   v. Scientific and Medical Cooperation

    Declining Fuel Supplies from Venezuela

   Limiting Travel

   Expels 2 Cubans, Restricts Others

   Right Wing Latin US Allies Expel Medical Missions

   Other US Sanctions Proliferate v. People to People, Banking, etc.

   Blockades Lethal to Children, Elderly, the Sick

US Blockade of Cuba Almost 60 Years

 

US Media v. Cuba

Lamrani, Cuba, the Media, and the Challenge of Impartiality

 

Cuba’s Achievements

Kirk, Healthcare Without Borders

Fitz, “Cuba’s Medical Mission”

Randall, Exporting Revolution: Cuba’s Global Solidarity

Lockwood, Trade Between Arkansas and Cuba

Heathcott, Expanding Agricultural Trade

Gillette, Cuba Rebuilding Its Railway System

 

Cuba Newsletter #4

 

Related Newsletters:

Latin America

http://jamesrichardbennett.blogspot.com/2013/04/latin-america-newsletter-2.html

Venezuela

http://jamesrichardbennett.blogspot.com/2019/05/venezuela-newsletter-1-from-omni-center.html

Imperialism

http://jamesrichardbennett.blogspot.com/2017/11/omni-us-imperialism-newsletter-36.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

 

 

 

 

 

END CUBA NEWSLETTER #6