During the 21st anniversary of Fiesta Boricua, Oscar’s presence was felt both on the stage and on Division St. At the National Boricua Human Rights Network kiosk, youth staffed the Oscar table, the interactive 6×9 cell, and an participatory Oscar mural.
Members of the community, including former Puerto Rican prisoners Ricardo Jiménez and Edwin Cortés, entered the cell until they each raised 33 dollars in donations. Volunteers walked among the crowd asking attendees to sign petitions to President Barack Obama calling for Oscar’s release. Thanks to the dedication of volunteers, NBHRN was able to raise almost $600 and obtain almost 900 signed petitions during the festival.
In addition, the Network debuted a 25-foot wide Oscar mural detailing some of the issues he was involved in. This mural will aid the Network in its educational work and will travel to the different chapters and contact cities. Lastly, another 25-foot high Oscar banner was mounted on the side of building facing the main stage at Fiesta Boricua where tens of thousands of onlookers were exposed to it.
