MIAMI, Fla. – One day after the White House imposed sanctions on the Cuban government, people marched on Calle Ocho Friday.
Yet another show of solidarity with the people of the island following weeks of historic protests.
Following the newly announced sanctions on Cuba, we talked to political analyst Sasha Tirador, who participated in a White House call before sanctions were announced Thursday.
“We are not doing things off the cuff. We are listening to your voices. There are many more meetings pending,” Tirador says was the biggest takeaway from the call.
Tirador, who identifies her political affiliation as Democrat, says she believes a military intervention is just not doable.
“People who criticize what the Biden administration did yesterday do not realize how much political capital the president is spending on this,” she said. Tirador feels that this is a time for action and the latest sanctions show that the president is interested in effecting change in Cuba.
But others believe the sanctions won’t drastically change the situation.
Andy S. Gomez, former University of Miami professor and author of the book “Social Challenges Facing Cuba,” said that the Biden administration missed a golden opportunity in the days following the Cuba protests.
“It’s nothing more than to try and appease a segment of the Cuban-American community that was calling for him to do more.”
Now the White House, he said, is trying to stop the bleeding.
“You are trying to put a Band-Aid on a cut that is 15-inches long when you really need stitches.
Those marching in Little Havana said the sanctions are not enough.
Alexander Perez /Kiwanis Club of Little Havana
No food, no medicine. And the people aren’t even asking for that. They are asking for liberty and for freedom,” said Alexander Perez of the Kiwanis Club of Little Havana. “That’s the ultimate goal. I think that that’s what the president should focus on and this administration has the power to change the outcome of Cuba.”
Meanwhile, many people are also wondering when the international community will step in.