The PSC’s Executive Council has voted to endorse a letter, coordinated by a network of labor unions, political leaders, and community organizations, urging President Biden to remove Cuba from the “State Sponsors of Terrorism” (SSOT) list before the end of his term in office.
The designation of Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism is arbitrary and political, and serves to deepen the economic blockade of the island that the United States has maintained for over 60 years. That policy has long had devastating consequences for the Cuban people, which have escalated recently in the form of power outages, severe food shortages, and an overwhelmed healthcare system. “The embargo is more than a failed policy”, the letter explains, “it is a moral injustice and a violation of international law.”
The PSC’s support for the open letter is consistent with the union’s long-term policy stances. The union has a long legacy of opposition to US imperialism, including working against unilateral U.S. sanctions since 2018. In January 2022, the PSC Delegate Assembly voted to call for an end to the US blockade of Cuba, explaining that such policies “harm our students and faculty, as well as U.S. and Cuban faculty and students more broadly”.
For 32 consecutive years, overwhelming majorities at the United Nations General Assembly have voted to condemn US policy toward Cuba. The federal government’s draconian measures, including the SSOT designation, are designed to punish the Cuban people, blocking the flow of essential goods. President Biden can and must take unilateral action to lift the designation. It is time for us to begin a future, as this week’s letter puts it, “of solidarity and mutual respect with the Cuban people.”
Published: December 5, 2024
