New Yorkers rally to mark 6 months since Maduro kidnapping
Brooklyn, NY – On July 3, dozens of activists rallied outside of the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) to demand freedom for kidnapped Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores. The picket also marked six months since President Maduro and First Lady Flores were kidnapped from Caracas in a United States military operation which killed 100 people, including 32 Cuban bodyguards.
Despite the oppressive 100-degree heat, energy was high. Bolstered by reports that Maduro had been able to hear last month’s protest, protesters chanted loudly, “Maduro, aguanta, el pueblo se levanta!”
Organizations in attendance included Workers World Party, Palaver Collective, Black Alliance for Peace, the International League of People’s Struggle, and Brooklyn Against War.
Michela Martinazzi of Brooklyn Against War spoke, connecting the heatwave with the U.S. military aggression against Venezuela. “The number one polluter in the world is the United States military. It is our responsibility as people living on this planet to fully dismantle the U.S. military and the system that upholds it. So today, we’re standing in record-high temperatures, and we know that war affects all of us. It affects every single one of us. And President Maduro and Flores, who haven’t done anything wrong except govern their country in a way that challenges the United States, are being held right here at the Metropolitan Detention Center. This is a war crime.”
The activists vowed to continue their monthly protest at the MDC until Maduro and Flores are freed. They will also rally at the federal courthouse in Manhattan on July 22, the next scheduled court date for Maduro and Flores.