U.S. report on Cuba mentions two activists of Dominican origin
The U.S. State Department has released a more than 100-page report accusing the Cuban government of maintaining a decades-long campaign of espionage, political influence and support for ideological movements in the United States.
Titled “Cuba: The Capital of Communism in the 21st Century,” the report was published July 20, 2026, and examines Cuba’s international activities from the 1959 revolution to its current relationships with U.S.-based political and activist organizations.
The document cites several espionage cases involving individuals convicted of passing information to Havana, including former Defense Intelligence Agency analyst Ana Belén Montes, as well as Walter Kendall Myers and Gwendolyn Myers. It also discusses the Wasp Network, which U.S. authorities dismantled in 1998.
The report argues that Cuba has relied on intelligence operations, relationships with political organizations and activist exchanges rather than conventional military confrontation to advance its influence in the United States.
Dominican activists mentioned
The report also highlights two activists with ties to the Dominican community in the United States: Manolo De Los Santos, who was born in the Dominican Republic, and Claudia de la Cruz, a U.S. citizen whose parents are Dominican immigrants.
Both have been associated with The People’s Forum, a New York-based organization involved in political education, immigration protests and solidarity campaigns related to Cuba and Palestine.
According to the report, De Los Santos traveled to Cuba in 2006 through the Pastors for Peace program and later spent several years on the island, where he developed relationships with Cuban officials. He is identified as a co-founder and executive director of The People’s Forum and has participated in delegations to Cuba and public events involving President Miguel Díaz-Canel.
De la Cruz, who grew up partly in the Dominican Republic, co-founded The People’s Forum with De Los Santos and has been involved with the Interfaith Foundation for Community Organizing (IFCO). In 2024, she ran for U.S. president on the Party for Socialism and Liberation ticket, advocating policies including reduced military spending and an end to the U.S. embargo against Cuba.
Organizations cited in the report
The State Department report names several organizations that it says have direct relationships, political affinities or other connections with the Cuban government. They include The People’s Forum, IFCO, Pastors for Peace, the Venceremos Brigade, Code Pink, the National Lawyers Guild, the National Network on Cuba and Democratic Socialists of America.
The document also references Black Lives Matter, pro-Palestinian organizations and groups opposing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations.
However, the report does not allege that all of these organizations are directly controlled by Cuba. In some cases, it describes organizational or financial relationships, while in others it points to shared political positions, support for ending the U.S. embargo or alignment with Havana’s anti-American rhetoric.
The People’s Forum funding
The report also examines the finances of The People’s Forum. According to the document, the organization reported revenue of about US$486,926 in 2021 and approximately US$4.4 million in 2022.
The State Department further claims that the organization received roughly US$28 million between 2018 and 2025, including about US$22.4 million from entities associated with technology entrepreneur Neville Roy Singham.
The report presents these financial and organizational relationships as part of what it describes as a broader network through which Cuba seeks to promote its political influence in the United States.
