Successful Hands Off Venezuela Meeting in Providence, RI
- 26 June 2006
On June 19, Hands Off Venezuela in Providence, RI held an event around the film "Venezuela from Below". Supporters flyered heavily for the event a few weeks before and contacted everyone that had participated in past HOV activities. There was a positive response from many people who planned to attend. Campaign members called several union locals to inform them of the event as well.The event was scheduled for 7pm, but several people showed up early and began to informally discuss Venezuela for about a half an hour. Right at 7 o'clock, most of the attendees had shown up, which is something that seldom happens at events like these, where people tend to trickle in 10 to 15 minutes late. Some 25 people showed up to see the film.
Shane Jones of Rhode Island HOV gave a brief introduction to the event. He explained a brief history of the HOV campaign and some of its recent achievements (the West Coast Luis Primo tour, the Austrian HOV organizing an event for Chavez to speak etc.). He also explained the changes in the situation that have taken place since the movie was made - the further nationalizations, the electoral sweep of the Bolivarian candidates, the movement of the Bolivian masses, the electoral victory of Morales and the partial nationalization of hydrocarbons in Bolivia. He also explained how the US is stepping up pressure and making unfounded accusations and rumors about Venezuela, the elections in Colombia and Peru, and the joint force military exercises the US is carrying out in the Caribbean. Jones then made a concrete proposal to set up a broad HOV committee in Providence and for a discussion about this after the film.
The film was received with great interest, with several people taking notes. After the film, a time and place was agreed on for the next meeting, and several people made comments and raised questions, all in a positive and productive atmosphere.The HOV campaign sold several DVDs, HoV magazines, and pins. Several donations were also made to the campaign.
The next meeting, to be held on the 10th of July, will be the kick off for a successful summer/fall HOV campaign in the city. Several of the people on the committee have traveled to Venezuela and plan to speak about their first-hand experiences publicly. At some point, HOV Providence hopes to coordinate a regional event, much like the Luis Primo tour which took place on the West Coast.
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