Devendra Banhart on Venezuela (English) i don’t know what to say about the current situation in Venezuela, nor have i known what to say about the ongoing socioeconomic catastrophe that its been. This has deeply effected me my entire life and 8 years ago my father was literally thrown out of Venezuela by Chavez for expressing his views. my mother is in Caracas and this is what she just told me : “the meat is all rotting and the shelves are completely empty at the supermarket…..its like a ghost town but instead of empty and quiet it’s swollen with fear and tension, i tried to go for a walk but got so scared i had to run back home……” Ive been asking her what she thinks i should do, how can i possibly help? with the passing of Simon Diaz it seems one of the last of the cultural lights has gone out, at least in terms of someone with a voice that would be heard through the established channels and by the majority of the population. I still can’t even talk about Simon, I’ve just been listening to his music day and night, i can’t talk about him and how much he MEANS to me, how brilliant a writer, singer, comedian, everything he was…so important to me…somehow it was easier to talk to friends and family about my grandfather, who passed two days after Simon in Caracas , than its been to utter a word about Tio Simon…. the Channels of communication that remain, (and don’t think that the police state government of Venezuela hasn’t tried to shut that down either) are this, forums/blogs/facebook/twitter and every other web based outlet. from what my cousin has shared with me whats really frightening is that its the MAJORITY thats speaking up, and its the minority thats suppressing them at all costs. hired thugs are beating anyone that MIGHT speak out and murdering anyone that does….. “may my sons death not be in vain” reads a blanket hanging from a balcony building in Caracas. the world is watching and my only hope is that if more and more people speak up , share their ideas , just include the WORD Venezuela in whatever their dialogue or discussion may be it might speed up the involvement of the world press and the UN/US. this isn’t about politics (which i know almost nothing about ) its about HUMAN RIGHTS. The only reason im really writing this is in the hopes that maybe one person in Venezuela reads this and Im writing this in english in the hopes that maybe one person NOT in Venezuela reads this. Everything im writing down right now is not thought out, my heart is pounding and head is racing after the conversation i just had with my mother, picturing her there, alone, in the heart of the city. i should probably wait, calm down, compose myself, but there is no time. Please reach out to anyone you know who is in Venezuela, find out whats really happening and ask how you think you can help. Thank you for reading this, Devendra Banhart
Posted on: Fri, 07 Mar 2014 21:15:24 +0000
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