BTL:The Future of 4-Decade Long Embargo on Cuba Debated at Summit Meeting

BTL:The Future of 4-Decade Long Embargo on Cuba Debated at Summit Meeting

Interviews with Lissa Weinmann, of Americans for Humanitarian Trade with Cuba,and Dennis Hays, executive vice president of the Cuban American National Foundation,conducted by Between The Lines' Denise Manzari.

While the nation's attention is on President Bush as he continues to plan a new attack against Iraq, a National Summit on Cuba was recently held in Washington, D.C. in an attempt to make peace between Cuba and the United States. The summit came at a critical time in the embargo debate as members of Congress are preparing to vote this fall on whether to lift current restrictions on Americans' freedom to travel to Cuba and create a more sensible policy toward the island nation.

The summit showcased delegations from each state, comprised of corporate, government, religious, labor, medical, Cuban American, and other community leaders. Co-sponsors of the event included the Farm Bureau Federation, America's largest grassroots farm organization comprised of over 5 million members nationwide and Americans for Humanitarian Trade with Cuba, which worked to increase the participation of Cuban Americans and focused on lifting trade and travel restrictions.

While the National Summit on Cuba was taking place at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., the Cuban-American National Foundation, the right-wing, and vehemently anti-Castro group based in Miami, was holding its own meeting next door, claiming there is actually more support to continue the U.S. blockade against Cuba with all its restrictions, including the Helms-Burton legislation.

Between The Lines' Denise Manzari spoke with Lissa Weinmann, executive director of Americans for Humanitarian Trade with Cuba and Dennis Hays, who is executive vice president of the Cuban American National Foundation's Washington, D.C. office.
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