A lot has happened and we have learned more since last week when we wrote, Venezuela: What Activists Need To Know About The US-Led Coup. This article updates activists so we remain well-informed and can educate others in the face of a bi-partisan and corporate media narrative supporting the coup.

The Green-Rainbow Party of Massachusetts opposes US government interference in the internal affairs of Venezuela. We recognize it is the ultimate right of the Venezuelan people, and theirs alone, to decide who governs their country.

We condemn the statements made by US National Security Advisor John Bolton on Sunday, January 27, which legitimize coup leader, Juan Guaidó, and encourage Venezuela’s military to overthrow President Maduro.

Editors’ Note: The following is an excerpt from "Last Western Empire. A History of the U.S. From Spring to Fall" by Anthony Gronowicz. This includes notes on the current situation.  Published by McGraw-Hill in 2006, it provides valuable background to the current manufactured crisis in Venezuela.

CHAPTER 11: THE ROCKEFELLERS TARGET VENEZUELA AND BRAZIL

The Rockefeller dynasty ranged freely in Latin America. As soon as oil was discovered beneath the waters of Lake Maracaibo in 1922, the Rockefellers set their sights on Venezuela.  Over 100 oil companies descended upon the lake, and by 1928, Venezuela was the world’s largest oil producer. The normal corporate cutthroat competition ensued, and by 1935, just three remained— British-owned Shell, Mellon-owned Gulf, and Creole Oil purchased by Standard Oil of New Jersey with the largest share at 49%. 

The Green Party of Pennsylvania (GPPA) has called for the U.S. to keep its hands off Venezuela. In response to a request from the Green Party local in Wayne County, the GPPA steering committee announced the Green Party's opposition to the current coup d'état attempt by Venezuela's Popular Will Party; the Green Party's continued support for the people of Venezuela and their democratically elected government; and the Green Party's desire to end all U.S. sanctions.

The Young Ecosocialists decry the ongoing coup in Venezuela being orchestrated by the United States government and its allies. This attack on Venezuela and it's people is an affront to democracy and a blatant act of imperialism and white supremacist foreign policy.

The Young Ecosocialists will be joined by Dakotah Lilly for a discussion of the ongoing attempted coup in Venezuela.

Two things stand out about the US coup in Venezuela. First, it is unusually open. Typically, the US tries to hide its coups. Second, the coup is built on a series of obvious falsehoods, yet the bi-partisans in Washington, with a few exceptions, keep repeating them.

First, we will correct the falsehoods so readers are all working from the same facts. Second, we will describe how this coup is being defeated. It will be another major embarrassment for the Trump administration and US foreign policy.

NEW YORK — The Green Party of New York denounced the ongoing US-backed coup in Venezuela as the latest in a long line of US imperial interventions in Latin America. Party officers pointed out that the Trump administration has been enforcing crippling sanctions on Venezuela and met with military leaders last year to plot a coup, which was openly reported in US news outlets.

High Springs, FL – "I stand in solidarity with the people of Venezuela!" says Robin Harris, co-chair of the Green Party of Florida, in response to the U.S. government's latest maneuvers to depose the democratically elected President of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, and bring in a right-wing regime that would hand over that country's mineral wealth to the powerful oligarchs that are still a dangerous force in that country under siege.

"The Green Party of Florida rallies strongly against imperialism, capitalism and the fascist tactics that the U.S and Juan Guaidó have wielded against this country," Harris continues. "We also denounce Donald Trump's affirmation of Juan Guaidó, head of the U.S.-backed opposition, as president. It violates all democratic process and is a total violation of human rights."

The United States has had a policy of imperialism beginning after the Civil War. The US way of war, developed against Indigenous peoples, spread worldwide as the US sought to extend its power through military force, economic dominance and diplomatic hegemony.

Imperialism is driven by what Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. identified at the end of his life, the triple evils of racism, capitalism, and militarism. Lenin described imperialism as the highest stage of capitalism. Imperialism has justified mass slaughter, resulting in the US killing 20 million people since WW II. The People of the United States must say ‘no’ to imperialism.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Green Party leaders said that the Trump administration's economic sanctions and threats of military intervention in Venezuela, along with belligerent policies targeting other countries, have made the U.S. an increasing obstacle to global security and stability. The Green Party declared its solidarity with the people of Venezuela and support for their well-being and right to govern their own affairs without U.S. meddling.

Greens called Secretary of State Rex Tillerson's warning of a military coup a patent threat in light of the Venezuelan election in April, which might give President Nicolas Maduro another six-year term.