Little Havana rally marks fifth anniversary of Cuba’s 11J protests

Little Havana's Tower Theater opened Saturday afternoon to art, film and performance tied to Cuba's 11J protests, as Miami Cuban exile groups turned the fifth anniversary into a street-level commemoration along Calle Ocho.

The City of Miami listed the Liberation Day Rally Art Exhibition from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. at the historic Tower Theater, 1508 SW 8th Street, with programming focused on the 2021 pro-democracy uprising. The theater sits next door to Domino Park, a detail that fit the organizers' use of the corridor as a symbolic route through the center of Miami's Cuban-American political life.

A separate Liberation Day Rally was scheduled from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. outside La Casa del Preso at 1444 SW 8th Street under the theme "Actions, Not Words." The march began at 5:30 p.m., moved along Calle Ocho, passed the Bay of Pigs Museum and ended at Domino Park near the Tower Theater. The route tied together some of Little Havana's most visible landmarks, turning familiar blocks into a public statement about Cuba's political future.

The dual program was framed as a way to honor people who stood up against Cuba's regime and those still facing political persecution. That message has particular weight in Miami-Dade County, where anniversaries of events on the island are often translated into murals, performances and marches that keep exile politics in public view.

The 11J protests began on July 11, 2021, and are widely described as the largest popular mobilization in Cuba in decades. Protesters demanded freedom, better living conditions and political change. Five years later, rights group Justicia 11J says at least 823 people remain deprived of liberty for political reasons in Cuba, a number that continues to give the anniversary force in Miami's exile community.

The Shrine of Our Lady of Charity in Miami also marked the fifth anniversary with a message calling for justice and freedom, reinforcing how deeply the date has settled into the city's civic calendar. In Little Havana, the anniversary was not only remembered, it was staged in one of Miami's most politically charged neighborhoods, where culture and activism still move through the same streets.