Rock around the Blockade is a British campaign in defence of socialist Cuba.
We campaign actively:
- against the US blockade of Cuba;
- in solidarity with revolutionary movements throughout Latin America.
- against the imperialist occupation and prison at Guantanamo Bay;
- for a boycott of Bacardi, supporter of the Miami mafia
Cuba shows that there is an alternative to poverty, racism and war. We use this example to support working class struggles in Britain and to show that socialism is the only system that can provide for humanity.
RATB was founded in 1995 by members and supporters of the Revolutionary Communist Group. Since then we have sent 13 brigades to Cuba, providing material aid to Cuban youth. In Britain we organise protests, educational meetings, film showings and live music events. We provide a voice for Cuba through our website. We consistently campaigned for the freedom of the Cuban 5 throughout their imprisonment and celebrated their final release in December 2014
In February/March 2008 we organised a speaking tour across Britain with three Cuban revolutionaries, including Orlando Borrego, comrade of Che Guevara. Around 2,700 people came to meetings to hear about Cuban socialism. Read more about the speaking tour here.
In 2010 RATB finished work on a documentary film, Cuba: Defending Socialism, Resisting Imperialism, filmed during the 2009 Rock around the Blockade solidarity brigade to Cuba. The film includes interviews with Cubans from all walks of life and shows Cubans celebrating 50 years of the Revolution on Mayday 2009.
In April and May 2015 we sent our 13th solidarity brigade to Cuba, taking ballet shoes and boxing gloves to break the continued US blockade and support Cuba's outstanding commitment to democratising sport and culture. We met with students, farmers, factory workers, philosophers, communist party officials, healthworkers and more - reporting back our experiences to our own communities, sharing the inspiring example of socialist Cuba. Follow our website for in-depth reports and articles from the brigade here.
In 2019, celebrating the 60th anniversary of the triumph of the Cuban revolution, Rock Around the Blockade sent our 14th solidarity brigade to the island. Young activists from Britain spent two weeks meeting Cubans from all walks of life, visiting schools, hospitals, factories, community centres, farms; learning about Cuban socialism and holding exchanges with Cuban youth about the reality of living under capitalism in Britain, as austerity bites and the war drive continues. You can watch our short film from the brigade here.
In 2020 over 2,300 Cuban healthcare professionals went to 24 countries, joining the over 28,000 Cuban medical staff already serving in 59 countries around the world, to combat coronavirus on the frontlines. RATB launched a petition calling on the British government to learn from and collaborate with Cuba in containing the virus and treating COVID-19 patients.
Want to be a part of Rock around the Blockade? Then get in touch today and help us build solidarity with Cuba!