Las Damas de Blanco is a Cuban opposition group made up of the female relatives of imprisoned and disappeared anti-government activists. This movement was founded in 2003, following what is known as the Black Spring, when the Cuban regime detained 75 human rights activists on the basis of conspiring with the government of the United States and receiving American funds. During the eight years in which these activists were held prisoner, the Damas de Blanco protested the detainment of their loved ones by attending mass every Sunday dressed in white. The movement continues today as hundreds of political prisoners are currently being held under Cuba’s repressive regime. The group received the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought in 2005 from the European Parliament and the Václav Havel International Prize for Creative Dissent in 2013, both of which were received by Berta Soler on behalf of the organization.