On May 1, 2017 Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro stood in front of hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans celebrating International Workers Day in Caracas, Venezuela. As they rallied through the streets, Venezuelan workers, students, youth, elders and revolutionaries were marching peacefully in defense of the gains of the Bolivarian revolution and for the sovereignty and self-determination of Venezuela.
This march is just one example of how, in the face of escalated right-wing violence and terrorism and imperialist attacks on Venezuela, the majority of people in Venezuela continue to mobilize in the streets, and organize in their communities, in support of the government of President Maduro and the Bolivarian revolutionary process.
As people in Venezuela mobilize against increasing US-led intervention in their country, supporters of Venezuela and the Bolivarian revolution around the world must also echo their call.
Every month since December of 2015, the Fire This Time Venezuela Solidarity Campaign has organized two protest actions in the streets of Vancouver, Canada demanding “US Hands Off Venezuela!” As part of these continuing and consistent actions, supporters of the Bolivarian revolution in Vancouver came together on May 5, 2017.
The two actions demanding that the United States respect the sovereignty and self-determination of the people of Venezuela began with a protest at the US Consulate in downtown Vancouver. From the plaza below the Consulate, solidarity activists took the opportunity to condemn especially the US attempts to intervene in the internal affairs of Venezuela through a regional diplomatic body called the OAS. On April 26, 2017 Venezuela announced that they were leaving the OAS, rather than continuing to submit itself to baseless attacks and violations of its sovereignty coming especially from US-puppet, Secretary General of the OAS, Luis Almagro. However, the attacks on Venezuela through the OAS have continued.
Following the energetic picket at the US Consulate, the protest continued with an information table at the Vancouver Art Gallery. Here, participants in the action asked people passing by to sign a petition demanding that the US government stop intervening in the internal affairs of Venezuela, stop their support and funding of the criminal and violent opposition, and end all sanctions, and also that President Trump the executive order that has declared Venezuela a “threat to US national security.”
The Fire This Time Venezuela Solidarity Campaign actions on May 5, 2017 were a great success, reaching hundreds of people on the busy streets. They were also held without any organized counter-protest by right-wing Venezuelans in Vancouver, in sharp contrast to what would occur at the next protest actions on June 2 (which you can read more about on page 28).
As the right-wing mercenaries in Venezuela continue to fail in their campaign to overthrow the democratically elected government of Nicolas Maduro through violence and terrorism, they will only become more and more desperate. The same goes for their counter-parts here in Vancouver and Canada, right-wing thugs that will continue to attempt to disrupt and intimidate peaceful protests in solidarity with President Maduro and the Bolivarian revolution here in Vancouver.
This is why defending the gains of the Bolivarian Revolution has never been more important in Venezuela and around the world. Join the Fire This Time Venezuela Solidarity Campaign at our next actions at the US Consulate and the Vancouver Art Gallery on July 7, 2017.
PRESIDENT TRUMP REPEAL THE EXECUTIVE ORDER AGAINST VENEZUELA NOW!
U.S. AND CANADA RESPECT THE SOVEREIGNTY & SELF-DETERMINATION OF THE VENEZUELAN PEOPLE!
LONG LIVE THE VENEZUELAN BOLIVARIAN REVOLUTION!
Follow Alison Bodine on Twitter: @Alisoncolette
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