ISEL CALZADILLA TOUR: LESBIANS AND ALLIES PROJECT‏

ISEL CALZADILLA US SPEAKING TOUR IS SUMMER SUCCESS!

This tour is the inaugural event in the US for our Lesbians and Allies Project.  Ms. Calzadilla visits us from Santiago de Cuba and is giving presentations on both the east and west coasts, sharing her expertise as an LGBTQ advocate, activist and medical nurse. Beginning in NY with a community forum and a presentation at the Latin American Studies Association Conference (LASA), Ms. Calzadilla’s tour continues with events in Montana and Washington, including a major rally coming up in Seattle in support of the end of the US economic blockade of Cuba.  Following the rally on July 5, Ms. Calzadilla will join the Pastors for Peace Caravan, traveling with them and speaking in Eugene, Corvallis, and Ashland, Oregon, followed by five California stops in Sacramento, the Bay Area, Watsonville, Fresno and Los Angeles.

Lesbians and Allies Project overview
Ms. Calzadilla’s Speaking Tour Calendar

Isel Calzadilla Acosta, Santiago de Cuba, is founder of “Las Isabelas,” the first lesbian organization in Cuba. Ms. Calzadilla consults with CENESEX (Cuban National Center for Sexual Education) to develop strategies for the struggle against homophobia. She is a member of the Federation of Cuban Women (FMC), and she is a nurse by profession.

She is a leading lesbian activist at the forefront of the struggle against homophobia in Cuba, and she represented CENESEX at the world conference, “Decolonizing Our Bodies,” of the International Lesbian and Gay Association held in October 2014 in Mexico City.

Havana Times article about Calzadilla and Las Isabelas

The photos above document these events: Isel Calzadilla in a reflective moment; Isel and Gloria Stancich, longtime activist, at a lunch event for Puget Sound Old Lesbians Organizing for Change, Tacoma, WA; first strategic US retreat for the Collaboration’s Lesbians and Allies Project, Indianola, WA; public forum at Washington State Labor Council offices, Seattle; Carlos Dominguez, director of ICHS, hosts a visit to the International Community Health Services Holly Park Clinic, Seattle; Orlando Solidarity Vigil at Cal Anderson Park, Seattle; Meeting with BABES Network/YWCA, Seattle; presentation for GSBA (Greater Seattle Business Association).