Forget Bolivar: In Times Of Turmoil, Venezuelans Should Turn To A Lesser Known Revolutionary Icon

Every country turns to their national history as they seek to understand their present. But for a country undergoing such a radical transformation as Venezuela is at present, it might be worth revisiting the stories that bind them together, as journalist and professor José González Vargas writes in Zócalo. 

The story of Francisco de Miranda may be just one of those elements contemporary Venezuelans should turn to, González argues, as they try to understand their current predicament amidst an ongoing crisis at home. 

De Miranda

Miranda is known in Venezuela as one of the key precursors of the country's liberation from Spanish rule, and a participant in the Independence of the United States and the French Revolution. 

He briefly led a newly independent Venezuela, but his short-lived independent and liberal state fell apart "because of factional squabbles, economic problems, and a devastating earthquake that left the most important cities in ruins". He was then arrested and delivered to the Spanish Crown by other patriots to guarantee their safe passage into exile, and his role was overshadowed by the successful independence efforts led by Simon Bolivar. 

His tragic end, paired with the elevation of Simon Bolivar into myth, is perhaps why nobody remembers him outside of Venezuela. Miranda, however, is also a more human icon, plagued with the imperfections of real men who inspire real changes.

In times of change, it might be worth reminding Venezuelans that "a lost cause is no less great, no less inspiring that one who succeeds", as González writes. For many who now think of their homeland as a lost cause, they should look at how Miranda's project was ultimately successful. 

Zocalo

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