Students Ignite Venezuela

For many years now we, the opposition, had been under the delusion that we represented the majority of Venezuelans. The wrong impression that most people care about private property, education, freedom of speech and other liberties which are so basic to some of us. The reality is that most people, what we call “el pueblo”, do not have access to good, sturdy shelter; that most people don’t own a home, or car, or business to defend. How can one can care about what they teach your child in school if you have to consider the safety of the place, the availability of money to buy school supplies, the dangerous commute to and from through the barrio? It’s hard to care about freedom of speech on an empty stomach.

Until now we had be unable to reach this majority because they are too busy just trying to survive. But the assault against the students by government troops resulting in death and injuries resonates with the entire country because even in the humblest family there is a son or daughter, a niece or nephew, a cousin or grandchild that is going to university.

The students have ignited our country and brought the Venezuelan people together after fifteen years of polarization. Since the brutal attack on student protesters on February 11th, there have been marches, meetings, barricades and other forms of peaceful demonstrations every single day flooding the streets with people holding signs demanding the release of political prisoners, better wages, solution to food shortages, a decrease in delinquency and the resolution to an infinity of problems we all face daily. What started as an action to defend and support the students has become a national movement to change our lives, our destiny.

What has been inspiring for me, and much of the country, is the organization and tenacity these adolescents have displayed since that initial event. They are on the streets in different states across the country, making a statement, raising their voices, hands and signs against a government that tries to silence their bravery with bullets and tear gas. They have achieved what no politician has been able to achieve since the first appearance of Hugo Chavez Frias. Our youth have united us once again and made us feel proud to be Venezuelans.

The students have found creative ways to get around the strict censorship the government has imposed on TV stations, newspapers and even internet communication channels. They stay connected to each other through Whattapp and Zello and divulge their message or plans to the masses through Twitter, Facebook and videos on Youtube. When the government tried to limit communication through Zello by blocking the information the company (Zello) simply developed an update which undid their work. With so much technology at our fingertips, we have all become reporters, journalists, photographers capturing the aggression of the government against peaceful but disgruntled people.

We have been on the streets now for seventeen days, non stop. During the day some of us may work, or watch the kids, or buy the food but we will also find the time to step out into our streets to defend our students, to carry a iron post to a barricade, to participate in a march, to assist an information meeting. As long as the students stay on the streets, they will inspires the rest of the country to fight alongside them.

Peaceful march turns violent

STUDENTS GETTING READY TO MARCH IN CARACAS. THE SIGN SAYS: MOM I WENT TO FIGHT FOR VENEZUELA, IF I DON'T RETURN I'VE GONE WITH HER.

Yesterday my two girls didn’t go to school. It wasn’t a cold, or a storm, or a national holiday. They stayed home because I went to march with my fellow Venezuelans and didn’t know if I would be back in time to pick them up. Like most Venezuelans who live here, I have been to many marches before and have lost faith in their effectiveness. But every time a new march or gathering is scheduled, I find myself walking among a river of people, hoping, praying and chanting for a better future for our country. Many immigrants who’ve left their own countries and settled here say that our situation is nothing compared to what they lived, what they went through. They say that things will get much worse before they can get any better. I march because I don’t want to hit rock bottom before we begin to rebuild our country once again, I march because I want things to change before I am forced to leave.

AERIAL IMAGE OF THE MARCH AT THE STARTING POINT.

The march on February 12th felt different from the beginning because it wasn’t political. It wasn’t an event planned by the government’s opposition to get international coverage. It was a protest led by Venezuelan students demanding personal security. It was the capital’s (Caracas) attempt to support an initiative started by students in other states asking the government to protect their citizens from increasing delinquency. Caracas marched on the 12th, the national day of youth, and the government responded with such force it killed one student and injured many others. From that moment on, many people flooded the streets in protest, increasing the number of deaths, injuries and detainees across the entire country. Many others (like me) have barricaded themselves at home. Since the government has complete control over television and radio, my actions are dictated by the information I receive from twitter and chat groups. There are rumors that school is suspended across the country and that we are in the middle of a coup. It is impossible to determine what is true or untrue, but my girls are staying home today as well.

PICTURE OF PEOPLE ON THE STREETS PROTESTING THE OUTCOME OF THE MARCH.

Last night there were shots fired in my neighborhood. From my window I could see tires burning on a mayor street, blocking the nonexistent traffic. Apart from the places of protests, the city was completely deserted. I moved my two girls to my bed while they slept, away from the windows in case a stray bullet reaches our apartment. It wouldn’t be the first time a bullet reaches my window in the middle of the night. I noticed my demeanor was calm, cool and almost robotic and wondered if I would have been nervous and neurotic in my husband’s presence, if someone else was here to keep things under control and make decisions. He should be flying in today. I hope he can make it safely from the airport to our home. All we can do is stay connected and wait.

PICTURE OF DESERTED STREETS AND TIRE BURNING FROM MY APARTMENT.