RNC Launches ‘Victims of Socialism’ Campaign

People walk back home in the Petare neighborhood after Caracas and other parts of Venezuela were hit by a massive power cut on July 22, 2019. Matias Delacroix/AFP/Getty Images

The Republican National Committee (RNC) announced on Oct. 22 a new campaign with a mission to present the outcome of socialist policies carried out in Venezuela and Cuba through experience and accounts of people who were able to escape Venezuela.

“When you hear firsthand from people from Venezuela or Cuba who have dealt with socialism, who’ve been driven from their countries, who’ve dealt with the poverty and the instability it brings to their government, I think it really resonates,” said RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel on “Fox & Friends.”

To facilitate this, the RNC launched a website VictimsOfSocialism.org where the stories of people who fled socialist countries like Venezuela or Cuba are published. She added that these stories may have a very powerful effect.

Publishing real stories of real people who lived in socialist countries, and were able to survive, will help people in America to understand the consequences of socialism—and the price that needs to be paid for free benefits, according to Victims of Socialism website.

Socialism is widely promoted by Democrats and Democratic presidential candidates who promise “run by the government” health care programs for everyone—including undocumented immigrants and free college tuition for all.

“All people get it regardless of their income. It is publicly funded,” said Bernie Sanders in the video posted on the Victims of Socialism website.

“The American people need to protect the United States from the socialist politics. It is crazy. It is incredible,” said Amed G. who fled Venezuela, in a video published on VictimsOfSocialism.org.

The socialists will take your liberty and offer “little candies,” he said.  Their strategy is to provide “all free” in exchange for peoples’ liberty, continued Amed G.

Warner M., former Mayor of Maturin in Venezuela, said in his video story published on the website, Victims of Socialism: that socialists are good orators, however “they have never created anything in their life.”

Warner M. also said that Venezuela was one of the richest countries in the world twenty years ago.  However, “after twenty years of socialism, we are one of the poorest country in the world.”

Neighbors of barrio Union of Petare open boxes of food from program CLAP in Caracas, Venezuela, on April 4, 2019. Eva Marie Uzcategui/Getty Images

The History Channel website presents the sequence of events that led to the current situation in Venezuela.

“Venezuela was a relatively stable democracy with one of Latin America’s fastest-rising economies,” says the History website. Venezuela possesses abundant oil reserves, which were the main source of the country’s wealth.

In 1975 Venezuela’s President Carlos Andrés Pérez nationalized the oil industry, says History website.

In the 1980s, when the oil prices fell sharply due to growing supply, Venezuela incurred significant foreign debt. ... The living conditions started going down, causing social unrest in the country states History website.

In 1998 Hugo Chavez became the country’s president and started introducing socialist policies and programs in the country.

His successor Nicolás Maduro continued the socialist policy and started “consolidating his power ... He was not able to halt the decline in oil prices that pull down the Venezuelan economy with it,” states History website.

“As Venezuela’s situation worsens, the Maduro regime arrests opposition political leaders and shuts down news websites and detains journalists, leading to criticism from the UN and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.”

Zulay Urbina, a resident of  Caracas, Venezuela, said to a reporter in a video posted on the Victims of Socialism website, “We are hungry. We have needs. We have no food.” The video shows Urbina staying in a long line with other people. The reporter explained that Urbina and others were queuing not to buy luxury goods but necessities.

Patricia G.H. fled socialism in Venezuela, and is featured in another video on Victims of Socialism website, advises promoters of socialism to go to Venezuela and see the real situation there.