Take Action
Venezuelans have created a grassroots movement to ensure that their government is responsive the country's neediest citizens, however, these reforms need your support in order to survive. As American citizens, we have an obligation to ensure that our government respects the sovereignty of democracies abroad.
There are many ways that US citizens can support democracy in Venezuela and help support the crucial social reforms of the Chavez administration:
Be a Media Watchdog
Click here to download a pdf
· Writing a Letter to the Editor
· Writing a Press Release
· Writing a Media Advisory
Take it To Capitol Hill
Click here to download a pdf
· Letter Writing
· E-mail Correspondance
· Face-to-Face Meetings
TEN THINGS YOU CAN DO TO SUPPORT VENEZUELA
1. Join the Venezuela News and Action list.
Get the most recent updates from Venezuela and participate in VIO calls to action. You can subscribe right now using the top sign-up box to the left.
2. Educate yourself.
Sign up for daily or weekly news roundups to stay informed of current events in Venezuela. You can also download the most recent and accurate information about issues that interest you, like the success of the literacy programs, healthcare provision, land reform, and US policy. Subscribe to news roundups using either of two bottom sign-up boxes to the left.
3. Be a Media Watchdog.
This is an easy way for you to effectively promote balance in the media by responding to inaccurate stories with letters to the editor. For more information on how to write a letter to the editor, refer to the VIO Organizing Kit, Media Relations section. Or click here for a pdf.
4. Join a solidarity group.
Visit the Venezuela Solidarity Network online for information about events in your town. Or, for help in finding the group closest to you or if you would like information on how you can start your own solidarity group, write to vio (at) veninfo.org.
5. Contact decision makers.
Let your political representative know that you care about US policy toward Venezuela. For more information on effective ways to reach out to your representative, go to the VIO Organizing Kit, Taking it to Capitol Hill section. Or click here to download a pdf.
6. Organize a House Party.
Click here for materials on how to host a house party or to organize a screening of the documentary The Revolution Will Not Be Televised.
7. Visit Venezuela.
You can organize a delegation to Venezuela or contact Global Exchange and attend one of their organized delegations. For contacts within Venezuela, write to vio (at) veninfo.org.
8. Support Citgo.
Buying gas from Citgo is a good way to help, because for the first time, oil profits in Venezuela are being invested directly into social programs in health and education. Supporting the Venezuelan-owned US subsidiary Citgo is one way that you can guarantee continued financial support for these programs. Click here to find the Citgo closest to you.
9. Be an expert on Venezuela.
Visit our Publications List to find books that will inform you about Venezuela's history, society, and politics. If you are interested in Venezuelan culture, check out VenWorld.
10. Pass this information on.
Contact your friends, relatives and colleagues who would be interested in learning more about Venezuela and encourage them to check out the Venezuela Information Office or sign up for weekly news and action updates by writing to newsandaction (at) veninfo.org.
NOTE: The Venezuela Information Office is dedicated to informing the American
public about contemporary Venezuela, and receives its funding from the
government of Venezuela. More information is available from the FARA office
of the Department of Justice in Washington DC.
Venezuela Information Office
2000 P Street NW, Ste. 240
Washington, DC 20036
tel: (202) 347-8081
fax: (202) 347-8091
|
