Venezuela, We Cannot Ignore

If you have been watching the news lately, you have probably been consumed with one of the various storylines about the President of the United States. It seems as if he is the only story the news media wants to cover. It really has gotten to a point that it is sort of nauseating. There are many important things going on in the world that deserve recognition instead of how many scoops of ice cream the President had. In particular, one of the most important events in Latin American history is occurring right now in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (“Venezuela”).

             For the past 50 days, civilians have been protesting the streets of Caracas, and other parts of Venezuela demanding relief from the oppression of the increasingly brutal and authoritarian dictator Nicolas Maduro. In fact, this has not been happening just for 50 days, this has been building up for several years as Maduro has been incrementally taking control of all of the major organs of the State in order to try to maintain his socialist policies. As Maduro furthered his totalitarian ambitions, the people of Venezuela have been growing agitated due to his encroachments. The people are now wielding their collective power against Maduro’s tyrannical socialist government.

Concurrent with this struggle is the accelerating implosion of the Venezuelan economy. Over the past couple of years, Venezuela has developed rapid unemployment, hyper-inflation, a depletion of State assets, as well as food and health-care shortages. As the situation becomes increasingly dire, the Government has become increasingly brutal. Government soldiers are beating children. Police are shooting people in the streets. The Government is imprisoning political opposition. Yet, as the Government tightens its grip on the people, the more the people are emboldened in their rebellion.

The significance of this should not be understated. This is a moment of collective awareness. The people are protesting together, en-masse, as one united voice against tyranny. This is a moment of moral clarity, of honorable and courageous citizens resisting a villainous oppressor. These popular feelings of justice and freedom can easily spread throughout a region as we so recently saw in the Middle East, which was termed “the Arab spring.” Thus, this moment of revolution is not merely significant to Venezuela, but to the entire Americas.

But why has this moment not been publicized more prominently in the United States media? Why haven’t our political leaders taken louder stances on this issue? Why are we not supporting the people of Venezuela in their struggle for freedom? It is important that the people of Venezuela understand that we see their struggle, and that we are with them in their pursuit of liberty. Yet, there seems to be little care from the news media outlets.

Why is this so? Well, as you may have noticed, there is a media war going on between the left and the mainstream media institutions versus Donald Trump and the right. The reason why the news media does not cover the on-going revolution underway in Venezuela with any vigor is because doing so would not only take time away from their mission to ruin Trump, but would also serve to underscore the left’s pursuit of socialist policies. By giving direct evidence of the destruction caused by socialist policies in Venezuela, the media cannot then effectively convince viewers of the efficacy of its institution here in the United States. Even Bernie Sanders has been having a difficult time defending the situation in Venezuela.

But it is not only the left that needs to do more, the right must speak out louder in support of the people of Venezuela. While many republican leaders, such President Donald Trump, Florida Governor Rick Scott, Florida Congressman Carlos Curbello and others have come out in support of the people of Venezuela, the right must keep the spotlight on the crimes of the regime in order to increase the pressure on Maduro. We as citizens must keep demanding our political leaders to address the situation, but we can also support the people of Venezuela on our own. By re-tweeting, posting about the situation on social media, and telling our friends to learn more, we can bring awareness to it. The people of Venezuela must know that we are with them.