April 19: Day of Action!

Webmaster

17 Apr 2026 — 8 min read

The Canadian Network on Cuba has called for a Day of Action on Sunday, April 19th. Member groups have been hard at work organizing actions in cities all across Canada.

April 19th was a date chose for two reasons. The first being the defeat of the US invasion of Cuba through the Bay of Pigs on April 20th (read more about the Bay of Pigs invasion below).

April 20th is also the day the Canadian Network on Cuba's parliamentary petition closes. We have reached 12,000 signatures so far. Help us in this final push to collect as many signatures as possible before the deadline!

Cuba does not surrender! Long live Socialism!: Díaz-Canel Bermúdez on the Socialist character of the Cuban Revolution

Read the important speech delivered by Miguel Mario Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) and President of the Republic, at the ceremony marking the 65th anniversary of the proclamation of the socialist character of the Cuban Revolution, at 23rd and 12th Streets, Plaza de la Revolución municipality, on April 16, 2026, “Year of the Centennial of Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro Ruz”

"From this historic podium, where Fidel’s words still echo, calling on the people to take their place in the coming struggle, and where today we pay a well-deserved tribute and homage to the heroes and martyrs of that day when the homeland resolutely donned the militia uniform, we call for a national and international solidarity movement to carry the truth of Cuba to every corner of the planet— the suffering of the people due to the actions of the blockade and multidimensional economic war, exacerbated by the energy blockade, which constitutes genocide given the extreme levels of deprivation to which all Cubans are subjected."

Another container of essential supplies is heading to Cuba!

Your generous donations to the CNC are paying for the shipping of another container, packed last weekend in Hockley Valley, Ontario and destined for Caibarién/Santa Clara.

This contains food and medical supplies, including sutures, scalpels, surgical instruments, IVs, needles, and much more, gathered by Not Just Tourists, Friends of Sanctuary, the Juan Gualberto Gómez Association, and many other supporters of the Cuban people.

Shipping is sorted for our March container, which left Atlantic Canada for Cuba on April 15th. Containers 4 Cuba will be covering the shipping for this container, and we’re securing supplies for another shipment to be packed later this month including much needed EcoFlow generators.

Thanks to your donations, we are able to intensify this material aid work at a crucial time for Cuba. As always, 100% of funds raised go directly to material aid for the Cuban people and to the shipping of these materials. Let’s keep sharing and promoting this collective work, and raise our voices in the demand to LET CUBA LIVE!

HELP SEND URGENTLY NEEDED POWER SUPPLIES TO CUBA

E-transfer to donate@canadiannetworkoncuba.ca
In the message section, please note your first and last name, and your email address.

Cheques payable to:

Canadian Network on Cuba
PO Box 99051 – 1245 Dupont St.
Toronto, ON
M6H 4H7

President Miguel Diaz-Canel thanks the People of Canada for our Solidarity

To the many friends we have in #Canada, this message of gratitude from @DiazCanelB is also for you, for raising your hands and voices without fear to defend the right of the Cuban people to live and to choose their destiny sovereignly.

We will never forget it!#CubaIsNotAlone pic.twitter.com/anRmC8acHo
— Embacuba_Canada (@EmbacubaCanada) April 9, 2026

Playa Girón at 65: Defiance, Sovereignty, and Socialist Continuity in the Face of Renewed U.S. Aggression

By Isaac Saney

On April 17, 1961, more than 1,400 U.S. Central Intelligence Agency trained and directed mercenaries launched a full-scale invasion of Cuba at Playa Girón—known in the west as the Bay of Pigs—on the island’s south-central coast. Organized under the auspices of U.S. covert operations and spearheaded by Brigade 2506—composed of operatives tied to the brutal deposed dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista, along with counterrevolutionary exiles and elites opposed to the project of social justice —the invasion aimed to crush a revolutionary process that had triumphed only two years earlier, on January 1, 1959.

Under the CIA’s plan, the invaders sought to establish a beachhead, install a so-called “provisional government” flown in from Miami, and fabricate a pretext for direct U.S. military intervention. It was a calculated attempt to reverse the profound social transformations unleashed by the Cuban Revolution and restore imperial domination over the island.

These plans collapsed decisively.

Within 72 hours, the Cuban people—workers, peasants, students, and soldiers—defeated the invading force. This historic victory not only shattered the myth of U.S. invincibility but marked the first military defeat of U.S. imperialism in Latin America. Playa Girón became a defining moment in the global struggle against colonialism and domination, affirming that a determined people could defend their sovereignty against even the most powerful adversary.

On April 16, 1961, on the eve of the invasion, a solemn mass funeral was held in Havana for victims of U.S.-backed air attacks. It was there that Fidel Castro proclaimed the socialist character of the Cuban Revolution, declaring it to be “a revolution of the humble, by the humble, and for the humble.” With those words, the Cuban people affirmed their willingness to defend their revolutionary project with their lives.

The proclamation of socialism, coupled with the resounding defeat of the invasion, sent an unmistakable message to the world: Cuba would never return to subjugation. Instead, it would chart its own course, guided by the vision of José Martí—to build a society “with all and for all.”Sixty-five years later, that commitment endures.Cuba continues to confront an intensified U.S. economic war—an enduring blockade designed to strangle its development and punish its people for exercising their right to self-determination. In the present moment, this siege has been accompanied by renewed hostility, including escalating rhetoric and threats of military aggression by the Donald J. Trump regime. These actions represent not a departure, but a continuation—and deepening—of a decades-long strategy to dismantle and erase the Cuban Revolution.

Yet, as history has shown, Cuba endures.

Despite immense pressures, the Cuban people have demonstrated extraordinary resilience, ingenuity, and unity. They are engaged in an immense effort to defend and safeguard their sovereignty, their social achievements, and to continue building a national and social project rooted in dignity, equality, and international solidarity. From Playa Girón to the present, their resistance stands as a testament to the enduring power of collective struggle and revolutionary commitment.

On this 65th anniversary of the victory at Playa Girón, we honour not only a decisive military triumph against the empire, but a living legacy of resistance. It is a reminder that the defence of sovereignty, the pursuit of social justice, and the struggle for a more equitable world remain inseparable.In recent weeks, the world has reaffirmed its unwavering solidarity with the Cuban people and their ongoing struggle to defend their nation, their revolution, and their right to determine their own future—free from external coercion and domination.

¡Viva Cuba! ¡Viva la Revolución Cubana!