FAMILY PUTS BUSH ADMINISTRATION TO SHAME:

Retired Sacramento Social Worker, Outraged at Stingy Bush Offer,

Pledges $50,000 in Humanitarian Aid for ;
 Serrano Applauds Action, Criticizes Administration’s
“Immoral and Senseless Policy”

Washington, DC, July 21, 2005—Outraged by the US government’s paltry offer of $50,000 to Cuba for hurricane relief, Ruth Foote, a retired social worker, and her husband Fred Foote, a local college teacher, announced that they intend to dig into their savings to personally contribute $50,000 to Pastors for Peace for hurricane relief efforts in Cuba.  

The African-American couple from Sacramento, California , is not rich, has never been to , and is not connected to Pastors for Peace or any other group opposed to the embargo.  For them, this is a matter of simple human solidarity.   Congressman José E. Serrano (D-NY), pushing to temporarily relax restrictions on aid to Cubans by their family-members in the , applauded their action. 

“This modest family has made a statement of our common humanity, and our responsibility for helping those in need during this time of crisis in ,” said Serrano.  “Their action brings attention to the Bush administration’s insultingly stingy relief offer to .  The Bush administration has handled this issue shamefully, playing politics with people’s lives, and I applaud the Foote family for so dramatically drawing attention to this national embarrassment.”

"It's just outrageous that our government would insult the Cuban and American people in this way," said Foote.  "I couldn't believe my ears when I heard it on the news.”

She says that she called Pastors for Peace because she knew of their work challenging the current policy toward . "This blockade just doesn't make any sense," she said.

"We welcome this news from the Foote family,” said Rev. Lucius Walker, Jr., executive director and founder of the Interreligious Foundation for Community Organization (IFCO), a 38-year-old ecumenical agency which is the parent organization of Pastors for Peace.  "As people of faith and conscience, it is our duty to resist and condemn this cruel, immoral, and illegal policy.  The blockade endangers the lives of millions of Cubans and inflicts suffering on innocent children as well as adults.  Ruth Foote is publicly declaring what the majority of people in the believe -- that this brutal economic blockade of needs to end."

While Congressman Serrano is pushing for a complete end to the embargo, he is currently working to temporarily ease restrictions on family travel, gift parcels and remittances, in response to the immediate and catastrophic devastation of Hurricane Dennis.  A bi-partisan coalition of forty-six Members of Congress have co-sponsored Serrano’s resolution (H.Con.Res. 206) calling for the easing of restrictions, and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has announced its official support for the measure as well.

A press conference officially announcing the Foote family’s donation will be held today in San Juan, TX .  For additional information on the press conference, please call Ellen Bernstein: 646 319-5902