The US-CUBA Sister Cities Association, (USCSCA) was born from the unique challenges and consistent frustrations faced by people from various cities throughout the US, attempting to create sustainable people-to-people relationships with their counterparts in Cuba using the time proven, well-respected and internationally recognized model of "sister cities."

USCSCA was created in March of 1999 at a Founder's conference attended by representatives of 13 different sister city initiatives nationwide. It was determined that many of the challenges we faced were not only universal, but systematic, resulting from a lack of normal diplomatic relations between our governments and a forty year, unilateral blockade by the US against Cuba.

It became obvious that the challenges we faced could not be resolved independently, and that we needed to work together on the roots of the problem to find joint solutions. We needed to share our experiences, our strengths, minimize weaknesses, and work with many diverse sectors of society to fulfill our agreed upon organizational mission.

To succeed in our simple mission: "To foster sister city relationships and understanding through mutually beneficial exchanges between individuals, community groups, organizations, and institutions in the United States with counterparts in Cuba," we were going to have to work collectively to make a nonpolitical space in which we could freely operate.

Our first tasks were fundamental organizational development; creating by-laws, electing officers, building an administrative apparatus. That was complicated by what is also our major asset; that we were ‘already’ a national organization, in that we were already spread out throughout the US. Simple communication became a priority; the most critical component for organizational development.

Simultaneously, we did not exist in a political vacuum, and the crisis of the Elian Gonzalez case focused the awareness and willingness of citizens throughout the US on ending forty years of ‘Cold War’ and the necessity of reengagement with Cuba. Communities everywhere saw the wisdom of building a sister city as the perfect tool to bridge the isolationism between our peoples. USCSCA was inundated; overwhelmed, with requests for advice and mentor assistance; public educational packets, testimonial speakers, and other help. We are not yet able to respond as fully as we want/need too. (See future funding essentials)

We were also confronted with the fact that every community seeking our assistance WAS in fact, a unique entity; each dealing with situations specific to their organizational opportunities. People were motivated by different sectors, and we had to ‘customize’ our assistance to fit the grassroots needs of the spearheading group, while helping expand their vision to be more diverse and inclusive as to what alliances and resources existed untapped, in their own back yards as a foundation to build their community base.

I think it useful to give a few examples of the actual scope and diversity we encountered, as the ingenuity in people’s interests is truly astounding! It is understatement to say that facilitating them, and uniting them into collaboration/ coalition has been profoundly challenging! And equally rewarding for USCSCA! Aside from the "usual" extensive exchange programs in sports, medical, educational, humanitarian, and arts/cultural exchanges, programs varied from "sister hairdresser salons" to setting up veterinary training in animal acupuncture, cave explorations, to "Tailgate Diplomacy" aimed at antique car buffs, building an African Diaspora center, a bridge, environmental cleanups, having a bilateral poetry slam, building an $80,000 playground with "Kids Around the World" and bringing in the first US ship to enter Cuban waters since the revolution; "Semester-at-Sea" which has brought over 2,500 students to Cuba, 800 per semester, from 200 universities nationwide! This is a powerful witness to the prospects of peace through respectful change! Making all these people politically "visible" occurs, not through their individual efforts, rather through their membership to USCSCA. It is the common denominator.

We also needed to educate people who deliberately chose involvement in sister cities specifically because it is committed to being politically neutral, that forming people-to-people links with the people of Cuba, although an end in itself, was so severely limited that true exchanges, no matter how modest, were not truly sustainable under the current conditions. In order to service their own specific agendas, they would find, as we had, it in their own best interests to work with other cities and sectors within the US to normalize relations.

Three conferences, two within the US; Mobile, Alabama, and Madison, Wisconsin and one with our counterparts in Cuba, brought literally hundreds of people into discussions about the make-up, character and goals of USCSCA.

We discovered, even when we are in agreement on goals, it became obvious how difficult it is, even within our own communities to build sustainable alliances on any issue. In part, because people ARE genuinely diverse; individualized to where they become almost ineffective, as well as many people suffer cynicism and alienation from their own institutions of power, and have grown accustomed to being marginalized; accepted as part of progressive culture.

Therefore, part of USCSCA’s "grassroots" work is helping people understand that the work of sister cities is not only outer directed to reaching out to Cuba, but doing the more difficult task of working within our own communities to educate through collaboration, our own city councils, local businesses, universities, religious organizations and peace and justice organizations to being more responsible to local constituents. USCSCA requires coalition building and makes the problems we face within our own communities of learning to embrace and learn from diversity, a complex challenge for all involved.

We also knew we could not develop an organization building authentic people-to-people relationships with the Cuban people, without some input by our Cuban counterparts. However, travel to Cuba is severely restricted, and so that created another serious impediment to communication with Cuba. Thus "freedom to travel," has by necessity, becomes an issue for USCSCA membership.

Aside from token dues from our organizational membership, and donations from individuals; both financially, and in-kind, we had no financial base to use for education or development. It was a catch 22. We needed money to move forward, and to move forward we needed money. We were the "new" kids on the block, and so had no track record on which to appeal for funds. Luckily, one of our members, Ms. Ellen Farmer, as her in-kind donation, wrote several grant proposals. Although most foundations refused us the first time around, the Christopher Reynolds foundation gave us a small grant. That made acquiring some tools to secure our organizational base possible; such as several computers and a shared database, so that our officers can access information from the different regions we live in. It also facilitated a crucial executive board meeting, where joint decisions needed to be made about USCSCA priorities for the upcoming year.

The acquisition of compatible and reliable computers with email and a webpage, alone, saves time, outrageous phone bills and travel expenses. We are now able to maintain a database that allows us to be responsive to our new responsibilities as an official 501.c3 corporation, which we have become, thanks to an in-kind donation from one of several lawyers working with us to make sure we fulfill all our obligations as a nonprofit corporation.

Our organization, in one year, has grown to where we now have membership-at-large in almost every state, including Hawaii and Alaska! We have doubled the number of existing sister cities recognized within their home cities and by Cuba, and have "seed" committees in many states working towards building a community base to create a sister city within their hometowns. We have also developed, with the full cooperation of our Cuban counterparts, a "regional" plan of operations and administration, designed to help people network and share limited resources, while building a public sense of ‘critical mass.’

Our executive officers are now each working to develop a specific region of the US, sharing information, but taking responsibility for the region in which they live. This helps cut down on travel expenses, plus builds a regional network, and may lend itself to future mini-conferences, in which regions will get together to share more localized resources. This also allows for more hands-on relationship to develop and for officers to become better acquainted with their Cuban counterparts in the provinces their region is working within. It obviously is also more conducive to building a true experienced leadership team among the officers themselves.

Already, this work is having a profound impact within public perception of US-Cuba relations, by giving ordinary people a way to put into action their willingness to normalize relations with Cuba. Our organization "brokered" the sister city relationship between Oakland-Santiago, with a very high press profile of Mayor Jerry Brown’s trip to Cuba and subsequent sister city signing. Also, many people became aware of a continuing struggle in St. Augustine, Florida, with the full support of the (now former) mayor, which is being impeded by the Cuban American National Foundation and its supporters. This struggle was reported on the front page of the Wall Street Journal, Miami Herald and USA Today.

Our organization is cited by many people as the face of the "new climate and tolerance" towards normalization of relations, and even congressional representatives are surprised to see such constituencies are becoming visible and vocal within their electorate districts. We have been very effective in shattering the public's sense that US-Cuba relations are frozen and unchangeable.

We are being approached by many national organizations such as Friendship Force, the National Council of Churches, Kids Around the World, and others with whom we are exploring future national affiliations. We are also listed in several books and publications as an organization to contact to make a difference in US-Cuba relations.

USCSCA has provoked a debate within "Sister Cities International," which has expressed a desire to absorb or associate with USCSCA once US-Cuba relations have been normalized.

Although Cuba has sister city relationships with more than 32 nations, USCSCA has even received inquiries from cities internationally. We have been asked to advise both London, United Kingdom, & Belfast, Ireland, who have begun their own sister cities with Cuba. Recently, USCSCA President, Lisa Valanti was asked to address a meeting of over 400 mayors from around the world with ties to Cuba, and informed them on the difficulties in US/Cuba relations that don't exist anywhere else in the world. As a result, it has been proposed that a possible European tour for USCSCA, hosted by different mayors, to explore possible alliances or solidarity, may be forthcoming.

USCSCA plans to provoke within every community in the US, dialogues among ordinary people; a sort of community referendum, on what changes US citizens would like to see manifested this new millennium, in regard to US-Cuba relations. And we expect to build the mechanism, within these same hometowns, that create the links to make our will prevail. We are inspired by Dwight D. Eisenhower, founder of the sister cities concept, when he remarked, "I like to think that people in the long run are going to do more to promote peace than are governments. Indeed, I think that people want peace so much, that one of these days government had better get out of their way and let them have it."

As a genuine, hands-on, people-to-people, grassroots organization, USCSCA membership seems ready to claim that day. A sort of de-facto motto has emerged among our membership; "Find a way, or make one." We intend to do just that.

Our next national conference will be the weekend of June 8th, 2001, and be hosted by the Bloomington, Indiana-Santa Clara Sister City Project. We expect broad based participation from groups all over the county. We will elect some new board members and work to solidify regions, as well as offer skills development that individual groups could not afford to provide for themselves. We also expect to have a delegation from Cuba participating. This meeting is open to the public. For more information see our webpage: www.uscsca.org or email uscsca@aol.com

US-CUBA Sister Cities Association

1. A Video - Educational and organizational promotional piece. We already have footage of the development of USCSCA, including all our conferences and many signing ceremonies in Cuba with Cuban counterparts. We need to edit and produce/distribute this video to inspire interested communities to dispel myths and stereotypes that discourage people from attempting a sister cities with Cuba; to demonstrate the breathe and diversity of communities already engaged in this dynamic process to encourage them to begin.

(See Educational Video proposal)

2. Board Development - We fully understand the necessity of becoming a financially self-sustaining organization. But to accomplish that we need to train our board, to assume its full responsibilities and reach their potential as the guiding force behind USCSCA. Since our board members are chosen by their membership sister city, many are unfamiliar with the tasks they must assume as the leadership for a national organization. Therefore, after our next board elections, (June 2001) we want to do an intensive board training while we are all together and to get the best start and distribution of tasks and responsibilities. ( See Board development proposal)

3. Paid Staff - Since USCSCA at the moment is run entirely by volunteers, which have performed nothing short of miracles with in-kind donations, still, obviously, if we were able to support several regional organizers, even part time, we would be able to match the requests we have to grow. As we grow, and gain membership, our ability to become financially self-supporting becomes more of a possibility. The catch 22 thing again. (See staff funding proposal)

4. Consultant Fees - As a 501.c3, USCSCA now requires the consultant services of several professionals; CPA, legal, etc., Although USCSCA is volunteer driven, some things require professional services, such as tax preparation. (We require as part of a "Capacity building" grant, funds to provide essential services until we can become self sustaining.) In the meantime we hope to continue to find skilled professionals among our membership to donate their services.

5. Speakers Bureau - We need some financial support to be able to send speakers and other resource people into US communities that want to establish further ties with the people of Cuba, and don't yet have the resources to be able to fund such support themselves.

6. Public Educational and Diversity Training Workshops - need to be made available to local groups as part of skills training. Since Cuba has been "off limits" to US citizens, misinformation is rampant, and we need to be able to supply resource people who can give courage to ordinary people that working together, we can add a critical component to a constructive resolution of the destructive US policy towards Cuba. The intervention of average citizens, standing strong in simple friendship, can keep forces working towards creating a military intervention in Cuba, not only at bay, but remove that method of hateful influence from public policy altogether. We can, and will, and are prevailing. We just need to organize and harness the critical mass that already exists in public opinion polls. Sister cities offers us the tool once we learn how to use it.

Diversity training helps people learn to appreciate and respect and value the contributions that people different from themselves can bring to coalition building. It helps people become aware of our control issues, hierarchy assumptions, and helps with cross-cultural sensitivity, especially important for white communities seeking to engage communities of color in coalitions.

In order for USCSCA to offer useful services to membership and the unorganized public, and attract the diverse membership that will assure our future self-sustainability, we need to secure a grant to pilot some of these training programs.

Fiscal solvency is a dilemma for any nonprofit, public service, educational organization. We exist and have operated since March of 1999 due primarily, to generous hearted in-kind donations from a supportive membership and public. We feel very strongly, that we will continue; if we must, to push this idea; this vehicle we believe in so strongly, uphill all the way if necessary. But it would be nice if foundations recognized, what the general public already has, and help us with several ‘capacity building’ grants, so we can fuel this movement which serves everyone's long term interests.

We also encourage individuals or organizations, including businesses, to become contributors to this national endeavor.

Respectfully submitted for the executive committee of USCSCA by:

Lisa Valanti

President

US-Cuba Sister Cities Association