On June 7, 2026, the Seattle/Cuba Friendship Committee (SCFC) voted “to remove the Socialist Workers Party (SWP) participants from membership in our committee,” as the organization announced, “because of ideological differences with the SWP Middle East policy, specifically their support of Israel in the face of Israeli genocide against the Palestinian people.” Others active in Cuba solidarity work across the United States have expressed opposition to the SCFC action and its rationale, even though many of them also decried the SWP’s position on Israel/Palestine; these activists explained that the SCFC decision set a “dangerous precedent” that could hurt the chances of broadening opposition to the U.S. blockade against Cuba. We publish here documents outlining both sides of the debate. This is the first of two parts.