Hugo Chávez and the Venezuelan Revolution Venezuela’s Bolivarian Revolution was a watershed moment in the history of the class struggle. It was a ray of light in the dark years following the collapse of Stalinism. Long before the 2008 crisis, Occupy, BLM, or the rise of Sanders or Mamdani, it gave credibility to anti-capitalism, anti-imperialism, and socialism. Hugo Chávez embodied the revolution and expressed the aspirations of the poor masses worldwide. The potential for a regional socialist revolution was evident. Had it succeeded, the planet would be a very different place. Instead of hundreds of thousands of desperate Venezuelan refugees fleeing into the US, the socialist revolution would have spread like wildfire across the border. The terrible conditions and heightened imperialist bullying that Venezuelans suffer today are a direct consequence of the revolution’s failure. It is a law of history: the price for not taking the socialist revolution to its conclusion is reaction and counterrevolution. Incredibly, many so-called Marxists claim it was never a revolution in the first place. But anyone who has watched The Revolution Will Not Be Televised will have seen the will to sacrifice and spiritual uplift expressed by the humblest layers of Venezuelan society. This is precisely what it looks like when the masses enter the stage of history, seize their destinies in their hands, and storm heaven.
https://marxist.com/hugo-chavez-and-the-venezuelan-revolution.htm When the Left manages capitalism, the far right takes power: Lessons from Latin America Boric’s presidency was born out of the massive social uprising of 2019 and the widespread demand for dignity, social rights, and an end to the Pinochet-era economic model. Yet, despite the radical language and the participation of the Communist Party of Chile in government, the core structures of Chilean capitalism remained untouched. Privatised public services, job insecurity, high living costs, and social inequality continued to shape everyday life for millions. Over time, the gap between expectations and reality became impossible to ignore. Kast capitalised on this frustration. His campaign centred on “law and order,” fear of crime, and hostility toward migrants — classic themes of the contemporary far right. At the
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