On August 29, around 75 protestors gathered outside the Westwood federal building in Los Angeles to demand extradition of anti-Cuban terrorist Luis Posada Carriles to Venezuela for trial. Chants of “Extradite Posada, free the Cuban Five!” and “Posada, assassin, extradite him now!” rang out for several hours as thousands of cars passed by, many honking in support.

 

People held banners and signs demanding Posada’s extradition, demanding immediate freedom for the anti-terrorist Cuban Five and denouncing the 45-year U.S. war on Cuba. Photos of the 73 victims of the 1976 Cubana flight 455 bombing, perpetrated by Posada and Orlando Bosch, lined the street. Cuban, Venezuelan and Puerto Rican flags also waved proudly in the air. And solidarity with the Bolivarian revolution in Venezuela was raised.

 

After a militant demonstration, protestors gathered for a rally. A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition organizer, Marcial Guerra, chaired the rally and recapped what happened at the protest outside Posada’s immigration trial in El Paso that morning. Guerra emphasized the importance of continued struggle to extradite Posada to Venezuela. Other organizations were also represented at the rally, including the National Committee to Free the Cuban Five, IFCO/Pastors for Peace, FMLN-LA, LA Coalition in Solidarity with Cuba, Party for Socialism and Liberation, Code Pink and more.

 

Muna Coobtee of the Free Palestine alliance linked the struggle to extradite Posada to the greater struggle against U.S. imperialist war and the September 24 national protests against the occupation of Iraq.