LALIT holds celebration for Oscar Lopez Rivera Release
18.05.2017
Wednesday 17 May was a day of happiness, celebration and vindication: Oscar Lopez Rivera, who was finally pardoned by Barack Obama, as one of his last acts as President, was freed. Oscar had spent over 35 years in US jails, the last three months in house arrest in Puerto Rico. So now he is a free man, living in Puerto Rico,. There is a great deal of celebration there! Puerto Ricans from all political currents across the spectrum suppported calls for his release! And he is still committed to the struggle for the decolonization of Puerto Rico, his “beautiful” country as he referred to it after his liberation.
LALIT held a celebration at Grand River, with film clips of Oscar Lopez Rivera, a speech by Kisna Kistnasamy and a beautiful big yellow cake with “Viktwar! Oscar lib!” in red letters, which we shared “pu fer labus du” (to sweeten us). A young supporter present said, “It is less than a year since I came to the LALIT protest calling for his freedom, and Oscar is freed!” She was born when he was half-way through his incarceration!
These are times of rare victories, so we experience this one with particular savour, letting it melt in our mouths like the cake did!
