On Saturday January 10th, over 130 people from many diverse communities came to hear the Honourable Cuban Ambassador to Canada, Ms. Teresita Vicente Sotolongo, spoke on her first visit to Vancouver. The event was the crescendo to a week of activities titled, “Cuba in Perspective: Celebrating 50 Years of the Cuban Revolution”. Organized by Vancouver Communities in Solidarity with Cuba (VCSC) in coordination with several other groups, the week saw over 400 people that attended 8 events in 7 days. The event, “Cuba: A Revolution in Motion” was a chance for Ms. Vicente to share Cuba’s current and historical achievements, and answer a wide array of questions on Cuba’s political, economic, social, and cultural realities. The evening began with a strong cultural program. El Salvadorian-Palestinian guitarist Joaquin Ernesto and 3 wonderful poets, Dilia Ochoa, Luis Velasquez, and Shakeel Lochan of which each of their performances were inspired by and dedicated to the Cuban Revolution. Tamara Hansen, coordinator of VCSC and co-chair of the Canadian Network on Cuba, then introduced Ms. Vicente, who became Cuba's latest ambassador to Canada in October 2008. She was previously Cuba's ambassador to Switzerland. Tamara also introduced the Embassy’s Political Counsellor, Mr. Antonio Rodríguez Varcárcel. Ms. Vicente emphasized Cuba’s many international achievements – with tens of thousands of doctors serving in more than 50 countries worldwide, its struggle against the immoral U.S. blockade, and the importance of the fight for justice for the 5 Cuban anti-terrorist Heroes held in U.S jails. When asked what she thought would be the biggest change for Cuba in the next 50 years, Ms. Vicente immediately answered, “An end to the U.S. blockade,” to loud applause from the audience. Throughout the lengthy question and answer period she also emphasized her faith in the younger generations entering the leadership of the Cuban Revolution, and encouraged the audience to look into the exciting cooperation happening in Latin-America between countries like Cuba, Venezuela, and Bolivia. It was a true honour for VCSC to be able to host Ms. Vicente’s first official visit to Vancouver, and all of those who heard her speak left thoughtful and inspired. The overall message was that Cuba continues to be “A Revolution in Motion”. Always moving, always changing, but holding firmly to and developing on its founding principles of justice, dignity, solidarity and equality. VIVA CUBA! VIVA FIDEL! VIVA LA REVOLUCION CUBANA!	Report Back VCSC's Cuba In Perspective : A Revolution in Motion Featuring: The Cuban Ambassador to Canada In Celebration of 50 years of the Cuban Revolution! Click on photos to enlarge