To help break the U.S. media/government blockade and offensive against Venezuela, the ANSWER Coalition co-sponsored anti-war leader Gloria La Riva's "Eyewitness Venezuela" speaking tour that traveled to more than 40 cities, sharing the voices, faces and resistance of the Venezuelan people whom she met during her month-long stay in Venezuela. The tour came to a conclusion with a well-attended event in Tampa, Florida on May 24.

From Boston to Chicago to Seattle to Los Angeles, the public forums attracted anti-war activists, university students and many people who are simply concerned about a new threat of U.S. war against Venezuela. They are anxious to learn, “What is happening in Venezuela?” and “What is the U.S. aggression really about?”

It is no exaggeration to say that the U.S. corporate media is monolithic in supporting U.S. imperialism’s brazen and unprecedented aggression against the Bolivarian Revolution. Fairness and Accuracy In Reporting (FAIR) issued a report showing that from Jan. 15 to Apr. 15, 2019, “zero opinion pieces in the New York Times and Washington Post took an anti–regime change or pro-Maduro/Chavista position. Of the 76 total articles, opinion videos or TV commentator segments that centered on or gave more than passing attention to Venezuela, 54 (72 percent) expressed explicit support for the Maduro administration’s ouster.”

Billed as “Eyewitness Venezuela,” the tour has given local activists the tools to counter the U.S. government and media lies, and to help strengthen an anti-war response. This slide show above provides some scenes where La Riva and local activists have held events. Many youth have been present at the forums; a special university focus has brought a fresh perspective to students.

To provide an alternative to the corporate media, each person attending has received a “Resource list of progressive media coverage on Venezuela.”