Inside Biden’s Cuba Policy: Film Screenings + Discussion

Join Gracie Award-winning Afro-Cuban journalist Liz Oliva Fernández for a documentary film screening and Q&A at La Peña Cultural Center!

Liz is on a national tour of the U.S. and Puerto Rico in October and November 2023 to present two new films on U.S. policy toward Cuba under the Biden Administration, produced by independent media outlet Belly of the Beast and filmed in New Jersey and Washington D.C. this year.

These are the first films in which a Black Cuban journalist questions mostly white Cuban-American decision-makers about U.S. policies that disproportionately impact Black Cubans on the island. This event provides an opportunity for audiences to learn more about the forces shaping the United States’ ongoing economic war against Cuba, as well as to engage in dialogue with Liz about her experience reporting in both the U.S. and Cuba. Co-sponsored by Richmond-Regla Friendship Committee, Bay Area Cuba Solidarity and Bay Area Venceremos Brigade.

FILMS:

• In Uphill on the Hill, Liz travels to Washington D.C., where she exposes the political interests driving the U.S. government’s Cold War-era policy toward Cuba.
• In Hardliner on the Hudson, Liz goes to Union City, New Jersey, where she looks into the murky past of Senator Bob Menendez and reveals how he became the de facto powerbroker for Biden’s Cuba policy.

LIZ OLIVA FERNANDEZ:

29-year-old journalist and on-camera television presenter from Havana, Cuba. Graduate of Cuba’s premier journalism school. Award-winning presenter of acclaimed documentary series The War on Cuba, produced by Belly of the Beast and executive-produced by Oliver Stone and Danny Glover. 2021 Gracie Award winner for Best Online Video Host. Other Gracie Award winners that year included Hillary Clinton, Kerry Washington, Lena Waithe and Catherine O’Hara. Oliva was also a key member of the production team that bested BBC and Al Jazeera to win the prestigious 2021 One World Media Award. She is co-winner of a 2022 Telly Award (Silver) in the category of Online Documentary Series. Distinguished bilingual orator with nuanced political analysis. Featured in Black Lives Matter webinar alongside Danny Glover. For more information: www.bellyofthebeastcuba.com.