Pancake/Waffle Breakfast Benefit for Puerto Rican Political Prisoners
On Sunday, December 16th, community members, sympathizers and El Rescate residents and staff attended the Pancake/Waffle Breakfast Benefit for Oscar Lopez Rivera, one of the last political prisoners to still be incarcerated. The event started with fresh pancakes and waffles, music and warm conversation. The room was filled with Oscar supporters who signed petitions to help finally free him after 31 years in federal prison.
Students from Dr. Pedro Albizu Campos spoke about how being a part of this community has changed their lives and how thankful they are to Oscar for helping found “La Escuelita.”
Matt McCanna, community artist and photographer, played “31 Days for 31 Years,” a video “in which 31 activists and community residents [spent] 24 hours each in a makeshift storefront cell with guard, for a total of 31 days,” according to boricuahumanrights.org.
Casandra Figueroa, HIV/STI Counselor at Vida/SIDA, and Jessie Fuentes, Director at Batey Urbano, performed “What Would Oscar Say” that spoke on what Oscar would have to say about the current state of the Puerto Rican community in Chicago. The residents enjoyed the performances and appreciated the sense of the community they felt throughout the event.
Finally, the event was capped off with a birthday cake and song for Alejandro Luis Molina, Secretary of the Board of Directors at PRCC and National Co-coordinator of the National Boricua Human Rights Network and long-tine advocate for the release of Puerto Rican Political Prisoners. On behalf of all the staff and residents of El Rescate, we would like to wish Alejandro a happy birthday, as well as express our gratitude to all those who made the event possible.