Ayala said although she is not Cuban, she felt compelled to stand up to the injustices being committed in the country because they mirror the struggles in Venezuela, where opposition leaders are being jailed for opposing authoritarian President Nicolás Maduro.
"If I'm already standing up for my family, I'm going to stand up for the Cuban family, too," Ayala, a family friend of protest leader Rick Gonzalez, told The Palm Beach Post.
The gathering brought Mayors Shelly Petrolia and Steven Grant north from Delray Beach and Boynton Beach, respectively. They said they support Cuban pushes for democracy and a restoration of basic necessities.