“Venezuela, you are not alone. When a people resist, all of Latin America learns. From Cuba to Venezuela, solidarity, respect, and hope. Long live Latin American integration!”
“We are students trained in the principle of solidarity. We believe that medicine saves lives and also builds bridges. We know that the challenges are great, but even greater is the strength of a united people,” say young Brazilians studying Medicine in Cuba in a video message, expressing their solidarity with the island and with Venezuela.
“From the Maria Aragão Brigade of the Latin American School of Medicine in Cuba, we share what unites us: solidarity, dignity, and hope,” the message states, adding: “Venezuela, you are not alone. When one people resists, all of Latin America learns. From Cuba to Venezuela, solidarity, respect, and hope. Long live Latin American integration!”
Since the founding of ELAM in 1999—an idea promoted by the historic leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro, in response to the devastation caused by Hurricanes George and Mitch in Central America and the Caribbean in 1998—more than 31,000 doctors from 122 countries have graduated from the institution, located west of Havana, including more than 240 citizens of the United States.
The studies cover not only tuition but also room, board, and educational materials, with the commitment that graduates will return to their communities to serve vulnerable populations.
This project complements the medical collaboration that Cuba has provided to dozens of nations, with tens of thousands of doctors and other healthcare personnel, since the very beginning of the Revolution in the 1960s, often in disaster situations or health crises such as Ebola or the COVID-19 pandemic.
In July 2025, shortly before the Trump Administration began its military deployment in the Caribbean and threatened Venezuela, Cuba, Colombia, and other nations, jeopardizing the region’s stability, 11 American students graduated from ELAM, joining dozens of graduates already working in underserved areas of the U.S., such as low-income communities or ethnic minorities.
In the video message, one of the Brazilian medical students at ELAM says that “Latin America is not just a territory, it is a project of dignity.” Another student points out that “when a people fights for its sovereignty, we all become stronger.”
[ SOURCE: teleSUR ]
