Rajshekhar Basu Sarkar
eSomethin Staff
Venezuela has been on the news lately for Maduro being captured by the United States.
Arizona senator Ruben Gallego said that “there is no justification for the United States to be at war with Venezuela. I lived through the consequences of an illegal war sold to the American people with lies. We swore we would never repeat those mistakes, yet here we are again.”
Other politicians, like the mayor of Miami Dade, Levine Cava, said, “The Venezuelan people continue to show extraordinary courage in their fight for democracy.”
Venezuela has been in turmoil for decades. The Chavista government came to power in 1998, electing Hugo Chavez as president of Venezuela. Hugo Chavez called himself a socialist. So, in that regard, he nationalized oil companies, funded social welfare programs. He was also hostile to the Western world as he and his supporters perceived it as imperialist. The United States and the Western world was hostile to Hugo Chavez as well because they perceived him to be authoritarian while Chavez’s supporters believed that the United States was hostile because of oil. So, the United States supported a coup against Chavez in 2002. It did not work as planned. In 2013, Hugo Chavez passed away.
Nicolas Maduro, then trade union leader, is given power in Venezuela by Hugo Chavez. He inherits an economy that is entirely based on oil revenues. In 2014, oil prices plummeted globally. This led to people leaving Venezuela. About eight million Venezuelans have left because of the economic turmoil. In 2024, Venezuela was accused of rigging its election as Maria Corina Machado was not allowed to run, accusing her of violence. Edmundo Gonzales, one of her associates, ran instead. He lost and then accused Venezuela of rigging its election. The United States and the western world contend that Maduro lost the election while Venezuela says that the results that initially showed Maduro losing was a glitch because allegedly, North Macedonia hacked the voting machines of Venezuela.
Sebastian Morello, a junior who is Venezuelan, reacted to Maduro’s capture, saying “ I was extremely happy because it’s everybody that’s been wanting for a long time. It’s been for 26-27 years. Him being taken out of power is the biggest thing for a long time.” When responding to critics, Morello said “if you’re not Venezuelan you should not have an opinion. They have no idea what to live under this dictator.” Morello then clarified, saying that he is okay with people having an opinion as long as “you’re informed of what has happened.”
Morello also says that his family in Venezuela is optimistic but unsure about the future of Venezuela. Morello lamented that “there are other people who need to leave, too.” Another Venezuelan student Luciana Caseares Betancourt, a sophomore, said that her family is both happy and scared.
Betancourt is a supporter of Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado. Betancourt said that her family is both happy and scared. She said “we all are optimistic about the future.” She exclaimed by saying that “I support her completely.” This was said when referring to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Maria Corina Machado whom many Venezuelan exiles see as Venezuela’s next hope.
Tricia Myers, a Spanish teacher whom students often refer to as “Profe” said the capture of Maduro did not impact “me personally, but I’m glad that a dictator is gone.” She said that the United States running Venezuela is the “lesser of two evils. If we had we given power back to the government there, so many generals that have power over people it would be impossible to have a free and fair election.”
Myers said she wants students to “know that Venezuelans are happy about it.” She also said before the “Chavez-Maduro regime,Venezuela was 4th in the world” economically. Myers said, “After Chavez and Maduro, 90% of the people live in poverty.”
Luciana Ceseares Betancourt said “We don’t care, other countries are taking the oil, it doesn’t matter to us, not a single citizen has benefitted from the oil.”
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