Austin News

U.S. Senators Ted Cruz and Dick Durbin, along with their colleagues, have introduced a bipartisan bill to rename the street outside the Cuban embassy in Washington, D.C., as "Oswaldo Payá Way." This initiative honors Oswaldo Payá, a Cuban dissident leader who was killed by Cuba's communist regime. Senator Cruz recently met with Rosa María Payá, Oswaldo Payá’s daughter, to discuss the reintroduction of this legislation.

Senator Cruz stated, "I am honored to be leading legislation to pay tribute to the heroism of Oswaldo Payá, who was a fearless defender of freedom and democracy for the Cuban people. His unwavering courage in standing against Castro’s oppressive communist regime cost him his life but not his legacy. Renaming the street in front of the Cuban embassy in his honor will serve as a reminder of the regime’s brutality and the ongoing struggle for freedom in Cuba. This legislation is bipartisan and should be uncontroversial, and I urge my colleagues to expeditiously advance and pass it."

Senator Durbin added, "The legacy of Cuban dissident Oswaldo Payá and the fight for justice and democracy in Cuba will live on. With this bill, we would designate the street outside the Cuban Embassy in Washington D.C., ‘Oswaldo Payá Way’—a symbolic effort to recognize internationally respected Oswaldo Payá, who was the embodiment of Cuban hope to a peaceful path to freedom. We stand with the Payá family and the people of Cuba in urging peaceful democratic reform and the release of all political prisoners."

The bill is also supported by Senators John Curtis from Utah and Rick Scott from Florida.

Oswaldo Paya was murdered by the Cuban regime on July 22, 2012. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights confirmed that the regime was directly responsible for his death.

Senator Cruz has been advocating for honoring Oswaldo Payá's legacy since 2015 by attempting to rename this street multiple times over recent years.