March 5, 2023, marks 10 years since the passing of Comandante Hugo Chávez. Comandante Chávez was a giant in the worldwide working class struggle; an anti-capitalist, an anti-imperialist, a strong defender of the sovereignty and self-determination of oppressed peoples, and an internationalist leader and fighter. His legacy lives on not only as an inspiration to social justice and anti-capitalist fighters but as a continuous call for unity in action for the international movement against imperialism and for the liberation of all oppressed people.
In 1994, Hugo Chávez, a young revolutionary leader, visited Cuba for the first time. While speaking at the University of Havana, he clearly stated his intention to not only bring fundamental change to poor, oppressed and working people in Venezuela, but he also declared that the revolutionary movement that he led is “determined to raise an ideological flag that is relevant to and beneficial for our land of Venezuela, for our Latin American lands: the Bolivarian flag.”
10 years later, President Chávez, who had been elected by the people of Venezuela in 1998, and Cuban President Fidel Castro announced the founding of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA). To follow were the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR), and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), alongside dozens of other projects and agreements aimed at strengthening Latin American unity in the struggle to end U.S. imperialist hegemony on the continent. Since then, Cuba and Venezuela continue to lead the way in showing the people of Latin America and the world that there is an alternative to staying under the domination and pressure of the United States.
The leadership and vision of Comandante Chávez, together with Cuba, in building Latin American anti-imperialist unity is one of the main reasons that the democratically elected government of President Maduro and the Bolivarian revolutionary process are now the biggest threat to the hegemony of the United States, after Cuba, in the Western Hemisphere.
The United States government understands this all too well. And in return, they have imposed a brutal and inhuman blockade on the people of Venezuela. U.S. imperialism is attempting to bring about the overthrow of the Bolivarian revolutionary process and to reverse the tremendous gains made by poor, working and oppressed people in Venezuela. They are attempting to reverse all that Chávez fought for and to destroy his spirit, which lives on in the people of Venezuela who are fighting every day against continuous U.S. attacks.
10 years after the passing of Comandante Chávez, we must see with clarity that the continuity of the Bolivarian revolutionary process is critical to bring about the defeat of imperialism in Latin America. Defending Venezuela’s sovereignty and self-determination is our essential task. Standing side-by-side with the people of Venezuela and the government of President Maduro, we must increase our united efforts to end the U.S. blockade and war on Venezuela.
In the words of Comandante Hugo Chávez: “Let the dogs of the empire bark, that’s their job; ours is to battle to achieve the true liberation of our people.”
Viva Chávez! Viva Venezuela!
US/Canada Hands Off Venezuela!
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