INVITATION:
ENCOURAGING ENGAGEMENT -
SUPPORTING A TRAVEL SURGE TO CUBA

Cuba Consultation 2008

Wednesday, April 23, 2008
8:30 am-5 pm
LOCATION: Church of the Reformation, 212 E Capitol Street, Washington, DC

Registration Deadline: April 16
Click here for printable registration form

A representative group of the Cuba Steering Committee (an ad hoc working group of more than two dozen organizations and individuals active on Cuba policy issues) invites you to participate in this year's Cuba Consultation day.

Since 1995, there have been nearly a dozen "Cuba Consultations," events at which a broad spectrum of individuals and groups who support change in U.S. policy toward Cuba have gathered together to share points of view and get a sense of the challenges and opportunities that confront us in the Congress, with the administration, and in public opinion.

The consultation is an opportunity for people who care about Cuba and changing U.S. policy to come together to discuss an issue which unites all sectors--travel. From academics to farmers, Cuban Americans to religious organizations, and from travel service providers to performing artists and even your average citizen, everyone is suffering under U.S. restrictions.

In recent years, the Cuba Consultation focused attention on the situation in the U.S. Congress, and the possibilities of legislative action. This year, due to the presidential campaigns and the intransigence of the Bush Administration, it is unlikely that Congress will take any bold actions toward engaging with Cuba. For this reason, the organizers want to focus this year's Cuba Consultation on encouraging travel to Cuba. This will include discussions on the impact of Bush Administration restrictions on travel to Cuba on various sectors in the United States, the significance and importance that this travel has to these sectors and to their counterparts in Cuba, and the need to support and increase licensed forms of travel to ensure that all avenues for travel are being utilized to their full potential by U.S. citizens.

A new administration will come to Washington in 2009. We want that new President and his/her advisors to be presented with an environment which encourages and facilitates a complete overhaul of U.S. policy toward Cuba. Significantly increasing levels of travel to Cuba where possible is one way to demonstrate how important a change in policy is to U.S. citizens. Putting pressure on OFAC by increasing license applications, optimizing use of existing licenses and general licenses, and generating broad interest in travel will help us communicate just how much U.S. citizens want to engage with Cuba.

We also will focus on the theme of cultural and artistic exchange with Cuba. Last fall, the U.S.-Cuba Cultural Exchange network--made up of American artists, arts presenters, agents and cultural policy specialists--sent an open letter signed by over 1,500 people to the Bush Administration calling for artistic and intellectual interchange between the United States and Cuba, and for steps to be taken towards normalization of relations. This year's Cuba Consultation will include discussion of cultural exchange and will provide information on how you may better work with those in your community who have engaged in cultural exchange work with Cuba. A panel will take place that will include the participation of policy experts, practitioners, as well as people of celebrity who are involved in this important work.

We think this is an exciting and strategic moment to prepare for a new administration in 2009--a time when we can push for an end to travel restrictions (and hopefully even the full embargo).

There will be a reception at the Cuban Interests Section for consultation participants the evening of the 23rd after the close of our consultation, as has happened in previous years. The reception will begin at 6:30. The Cuban Interests Section is located at 2630 16th St NW, Washington, DC. Directions to the reception will be available at Cuba Consultation 2008.

We encourage you to take advantage of being in Washington to make appointments with your members of Congress for the following day, Thursday, April 24. We can help you with phone numbers, staff names, etc., if you ask. We will also provide a "How to" session, with coffee and bagels, the morning of the 24th for those staying to make Hill visits.

We are also excited to announce the Chuchito Valdès Quartet will be performing at DC's HR-57Center for the Preservation of Jazz and Blues at 7:00 pm on April 22nd. See the invitation here. We expect the event to be crowded, so come early to get the best seats in the house! Congressman John Conyers (D-MI), Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee and a strong advocate for changing Cuba policy, will introduce the Chuchito Valdès Quartet. (Unfortunately, we are unable to pre-sell tickets.) HR-57 is one of DC's great jazz clubs dedicated to the promotion of American Jazz and Blues music. HR-57 is located at 1610 14th St NW, Washington, DC, and is a short walk from the U Street Cardozo Metro Station on the Green Line. See HR-57's website for more information. http://www.hr57.org.

A tentative agenda--to help encourage you to participate--follows our signatures.

The Cuba Consultation 2008 registration fee is a modest $30 per person, to help us cover lunch, materials, venue, etc. There is a space on the registration form for your credit card information, or you may write a check to LAWG to attach to your snail mail registration, or to give us upon arrival at the consultation.

If you have any further questions, contact Claire Rodriguez/LAWG, 202.546.7010, lawg@lawg.org; or Lilia Lopez/WOLA, 202.797.2171, llopez@wola.org.

Center for Democracy in the Americas (CDA)--Sarah Stephens and Collin Laverty
Center for International Policy (CIP)--Jennifer Schuett
Fund for Reconciliation and Development (FRD)--John McAuliff
Latin America Working Group (LAWG)--Mavis Anderson and Claire Rodriguez
U.S.-Cuba Cultural Exchange--Louis Head
Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA)--Elsa Falkenburger and Lilia Lopez