A score of U.S.-based Protestant church bodies urged President Joe Biden to make substantial changes in bilateral relations with Cuba, including its removal from the State Department's List of State Sponsors of Terrorism (LEPT).
In a letter dated May 9, 12 organizations representing different religious denominations and 8 faith-based institutions point out that the current U.S. policy of strangling Cuban society with an economic blockade to force it to overthrow its government is morally unacceptable and contrary to their faith; as well as to basic human rights principles.
The letter to President Biden acknowledges that reincorporating Cuba into the LEPT was a grave mistake and has had an enormously detrimental effect on the Cuban people. They note that the decision has led banks, financial institutions and international suppliers to withdraw support for regular trade and collaboration with religious groups providing humanitarian aid in Cuba, limiting the ability of religious organizations in the U.S. to offer assistance and financial aid to their Cuban counterparts.
The clergy conclude their communication by urging the President to remove Cuba from the "List of State Sponsors of Terrorism", to take measures to end the economic blockade and to normalize relations with Cuba.
The initiative is part of an offensive by various sectors of U.S. civil society to put an end to the anachronistic U.S. policy towards Cuba.