Features: Social Movements

VA's Lucas Koerner argues that the emergent movement surrounding Bernie Sander's presidential bid in the US is more at home in Caracas than Copenhagen– despite Sander's statements to the contrary.

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#LATE, “Every heartbeat counts”. The provocative slogan is flooding Venezuelan social media in recent weeks, appearing in vibrantly colored artwork, videos, and other multimedia. Much more than a passing hashtag, the campaign is the work of an army of revolutionary artists and grassroots media activists seeking to reinvent the aesthetic narrative of the Bolivarian Revolution, overcome "the exhaustion of the image of Chávez" and situate the commune at its “symbolic center”.

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While the shortages and long-lines are creating serious inconveniences and undeniable burdens on most Venezuelans, beyond the frustration, the voices of grassroots Venezuelans are getting lost beneath negative predictions of macroeconomic collapse. In this oral history collage, members of the Venezuelan grassroots and popular movements speak for themselves about the roots of the economic war, their strategies in the face of it, and the solutions that they propose.

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Fuga was created just days after Chavez’s death, when Rodrigo met two other artists and kindred spirits among the millions waiting in line to pay their respects at the socialist leader’s wake in Caracas. It was a time of disbelief and heartache for the majority of Venezuelans- but many, like Rodrigo, hit the ground running, channeling grief into action.

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Early last month, five men were shot dead in a high-rise building at the center of Caracas during an early morning standoff between special intelligence police (CICPC) and armed members of revolutionary collectives. While the circumstances leading up to the event are still unclear, the so-called Quinta Crespo Massacre created a ripple effect within the Venezuelan left that quickly highlighted a growing rift between the revolutionary left and the Bolivarian government.

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As it's prone to do, the private media has invented a new thing. In both English and Spanish they are calling it colectivos, and these collectives are meant to be irrational, cruel, grotesque armed motorbike riders who “enforce” the revolution and are responsible for most of the current violence. 

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