As tensions in Venezuela continue to escalate, Miami is witnessing a surge in solidarity for the country's opposition movement. Earlier today, thousands are expected to unite at Downtown Miami's Bayfront Park in a demonstration organized alongside events taking place in Venezuela.
Local officials have pledged their support for the protest, slated to begin at 10 a.m., by offering 2,280 parking spaces free of charge, as reported by Local 10. These spots will be strategically located to include areas across from Bayside and near Metromover stations in Downtown to facilitate the gathering.
In an announcement captured by NBC Miami, City Commissioner Joe Carollo and Maria Teresa Morin, South Florida Coordinator for the Venezuelan opposition and a close ally of opposition leader María Corina Machado, have both confirmed the event. "They are not even communists, they are just organized criminals that took power, nothing more," Morin said, condemning the Nicolas Maduro regime currently in power.
Streamed through a videotaped message, opposition leader María Corina Machado urged her supporters to take to the streets peacefully. "It is very hard for me to see all of my friends disappearing, tortured, or refugees at embassies, it is very hard," Morin relayed Machado's sentiments to NBC Miami. "I wish I could be there, but we are fighting from here."
Amid this local support, the US has also engaged diplomatically, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken recognizing Edmundo González as Venezuela's President-Elect. Concurrently, Florida Senators Marco Rubio and Rick Scott are sponsoring a resolution to similarly recognize González. The resolution, as highlighted by NBC Miami, also calls for new sanctions against the Maduro regime, targeting those complicit in undermining democracy.
The protests in Miami serve to mirror the strife of Venezuelans under Maduro's rule, as captured by Local 10. This particular gathering at Bayfront Park represents not just a demonstration, but a communion of spirits across seas—standing juxtaposed against the repressive measures faced by those in Venezuela, including arbitrary detentions and militaristic crackdowns on peaceful demonstrators seeking democracy and human rights for their nation.
