The following are remarks by John Parker of the Harriet Tubman Center for Social Justice and the Struggle for Socialism Party, delivered at a Jan. 3 emergency protest in Los Angeles organized by Unión del Barrio, the Community Self-Defense Coalition, and other organizations.
Introduction by Ron Gochez, Unión del Barrio
We’re going to get started. Good morning to everyone, or good afternoon for those just joining us.
Thank you all for being here. The reason we’re here today, on behalf of Unión del Barrio, the Community Self‑Defense Coalition, and several other organizations that are present, is because we know what happened early this morning in Venezuela. We’re very concerned about what happened, and we’re here to share statements from various organizations.
Up first, we want to bring up someone who was just in Venezuela a couple of weeks ago and had the chance to see things firsthand. I’ll let him talk about it, but I want to bring up John Parker from the Harriet Tubman Center for Social Justice, and also from the Struggle for Socialism Party. John Parker.
John Parker, Harriet Tubman Center for Social Justice / Struggle for Socialism Party
It’s so inspiring to have this action right here, and it’s so important, the things that we do. We absolutely condemn the brutal assault and the kidnapping that the U.S. government — the criminal U.S. government — is carrying out right now. One of the things we should demand is that Trump be jailed and that they free Maduro.
That’s right. What is the Democratic Party doing right now? Are they saying anything about it? Is the Republican Party saying anything about this criminal behavior, these war crimes that are going on right now?
I can tell you, a couple of weeks ago I was in Venezuela as part of a U.S. delegation to try to stop the war on Venezuela. And I can tell you why they don’t want Venezuela, why they kidnap Maduro. It has nothing to do with drugs. That’s a lie, and they know it’s a lie.
What they don’t want you to know is what the Venezuelan people and the government are doing right now to try to stop the horrible attack on the economy by the U.S. government, its sanctions, and things like that. What are they doing? They’re trying to build socialism in Venezuela.
I was there. I saw what they were doing. I saw the love that the people in Venezuela have for their president, for Maduro, and for the vice president who is now in charge. They have a great love. I saw Maduro walking around in crowds and not being afraid, not surrounded by heavy security, because he is secured by the love of the people and their love for socialism.
And that’s their “crime.” That’s why they’re trying to stop it — and we will not tolerate that.
We need food. We need health care. We need all the things required to feed our children. We don’t need war in Venezuela. We need allies. Venezuela was giving oil; they were helping poor people and poor communities in this country meet their basic needs, to stay warm through CITGO and things like that. That’s what they don’t like. They don’t like solidarity.
We’re going to build solidarity, and we’re not going to stop until this administration — whoever is collaborating with genocide in Gaza or wherever — is held accountable, until those folks are in jail and the real leaders of this community are able to take charge.
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