Welcome to the blog of the Cuba Friendship Group of Greater Ithaca. We organize local support for the Pastors for Peace US-Cuba Friendshipment Caravans and support freedom to travel. We demand an end to the US trade, economic, financial and cultural blockade of Cuba and the release of the Cuban Five. We envision a post-embargo era of peace and mutual respect between the US and Cuba, and toward that end we encourage relationships through the US-Cuba Sister Cities Association.
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
Ellen Bernstein was interviewed Tuesday morning by Dave Vieser on WHCU 870. She makes an interesting parallel with Iraq in regard to U.S. plans for transition in Cuba. 7 min : 47 sec 5.4 Mb.
Ellen P.Bernstein has served as Associate Director of the Interreligious Foundation for Community Organization (IFCO) since 2003. She joined the staff of IFCO in 1992, and previously held the title of Grants Administrator. She has been a key staff member of IFCO’s project Pastors for Peace, and has been deeply and integrally involved in IFCO’s historic work with Cuba. She has been a leader of more than 60 trips to Cuba since 1993. She has been a spokesperson and participant in 14 of IFCO’s 16 “Friendshipment” caravans, which have delivered more than 2500 tons of humanitarian aid to Cuba as a grassroots challenge to the US economic blockade. As the organizer of 18 Congressional delegations to Cuba, she has traveled to Cuba with 19 members of Congress and 40 key Congressional aides. She has also led numerous religious and grassroots delegations to Cuba, and has organized several US speaking tours for religious leaders from Cuba.
As coordinator of IFCO’s legislative outreach, Ellen has done extensive work on Capitol Hill, and has kept IFCO’s national grassroots network informed about legislative affairs and Cuba policy issues. Through IFCO’s efforts, 18 of the voting members of the Congressional Black Caucus have visited Cuba since 1999. It was during the visit of one of these Black Caucus delegations that President Castro first offered full scholarships for medical school study to low-income and minority students from the US. Since January 2001, IFCO has been administering the US admissions program for the Latin American Medical School in Havana. Nearly 100 US students are enrolled in this groundbreaking scholarship program, along with students from 26 other countries.
Ellen was coordinator of the support teams for two historic IFCO campaigns: the hunger strike on the Little Yellow Schoolbus in 1993, and the 1996 Fast for Life to send medical computers to Cuba. She has worked closely with IFCO’s director and attorneys to successfully defend IFCO against a variety of US government challenges. She also had a leadership role in the national grassroots campaign to return Elián González to his father in Cuba. As IFCO’s grants administrator, Ellen has worked directly with the dozens of domestic grassroots community projects for which IFCO serves as fiscal sponsor.
Ellen is a doctoral candidate in counseling psychology at Columbia University Teachers College, and a graduate of Princeton University (BA, psychology, 1973). Before joining the staff of IFCO, she worked for 10 years as a psychotherapist in Oberlin, Ohio.
1 comment:
Who is Ellen Bernstein?
Ellen P.Bernstein has served as Associate Director of the Interreligious Foundation for
Community Organization (IFCO) since 2003. She joined the staff of IFCO in 1992, and previously held the title of Grants Administrator. She has been a key staff member of IFCO’s project Pastors for Peace, and has been deeply and integrally involved in IFCO’s historic work with Cuba.
She has been a leader of more than 60 trips to Cuba since 1993. She has been a spokesperson and participant in 14 of IFCO’s 16 “Friendshipment” caravans, which have delivered more than 2500 tons of humanitarian aid to Cuba as a grassroots challenge to the US economic blockade. As the organizer of 18 Congressional delegations to Cuba, she has traveled to Cuba with 19 members of Congress and 40 key Congressional aides. She has also led numerous religious and grassroots
delegations to Cuba, and has organized several US speaking tours for religious leaders from Cuba.
As coordinator of IFCO’s legislative outreach, Ellen has done extensive work on Capitol Hill, and has kept IFCO’s national grassroots network informed about legislative affairs and Cuba policy issues. Through IFCO’s efforts, 18 of the voting members of the Congressional Black Caucus have visited Cuba since 1999. It was during the visit of one of these Black Caucus delegations that President Castro first offered full scholarships for medical school study to low-income and minority students from the US. Since January 2001, IFCO has been administering the US admissions program for the Latin American Medical School in Havana. Nearly 100 US students are enrolled in this groundbreaking scholarship program, along with students from 26 other countries.
Ellen was coordinator of the support teams for two historic IFCO campaigns: the hunger strike on the Little Yellow Schoolbus in 1993, and the 1996 Fast for Life to send medical computers to Cuba. She has worked closely with IFCO’s director and attorneys to successfully defend IFCO against a variety of US government challenges. She also had a leadership role in the national grassroots campaign to return Elián González to his father in Cuba. As IFCO’s grants administrator, Ellen has worked directly with the dozens of domestic grassroots community projects for which IFCO serves as fiscal sponsor.
Ellen is a doctoral candidate in counseling psychology at Columbia University Teachers College, and a graduate of Princeton University (BA, psychology, 1973). Before joining the staff of IFCO, she worked for 10 years as a psychotherapist in Oberlin, Ohio.
Post a Comment