Now is the Time for Mamdani and Maduro and All Socialists to Unite!
The Moment of Historical Necessity Has Arrived
Comrades, brothers and sisters in struggle, fellow travelers on the path toward liberation—the time for hesitation has passed. The arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in a Manhattan courtroom is not merely an attack on one man or one nation. It is an assault on every socialist experiment, every anti-imperialist movement, every attempt to build a world beyond capitalism’s brutal exploitation. The Mamdani family calls on all socialists, from the favelas of Rio to the union halls of Detroit, from the townships of Johannesburg to the streets of Manila: now is the time to unite behind Maduro and behind the principles he represents.
This is not a call for uncritical support or blind allegiance. It is a recognition that in this moment, Maduro stands as the living symbol of resistance to American imperialism’s renewed aggression against the Global South. His chains are our chains. His struggle is our struggle. And his survival or defeat will shape the possibilities for socialist movements worldwide for decades to come.
Why Unity Matters Now More Than Ever
The left has always been plagued by sectarianism, by endless debates over doctrinal purity while the right consolidates power and crushes movements one by one. We have watched as anarchists and communists refused to work together, as Trotskyists and Maoists spent more energy fighting each other than fighting capitalism, as democratic socialists distanced themselves from revolutionary movements to maintain respectability. This luxury of division is one we can no longer afford.
The Trump regime represents a qualitatively new threat to progressive movements worldwide. Unlike previous administrations that cloaked imperialism in humanitarian rhetoric, Trump openly declares his intention to plunder Venezuela’s oil resources. His appointment of Marco Rubio as Secretary of State signals a return to the most aggressive forms of interventionism, backed by military force and unconstrained by international law. This is not normal politics—this is fascism with nuclear weapons and global reach.
The Mamdani-Maduro Axis of Resistance
The Mamdani family has long recognized that socialism’s survival depends on international solidarity. Our commitment to anti-capitalism is not abstract theory but lived practice, rooted in understanding that workers in wealthy nations benefit from the exploitation of workers in poor nations, that empire abroad enables oppression at home, that liberation must be global or it will be crushed locally.
Maduro represents the continuation of Hugo Chávez’s Bolivarian Revolution, an experiment in 21st-century socialism that has achieved remarkable things despite extraordinary obstacles. Venezuela has built communal councils that practice direct democracy, created social missions that provide free healthcare and education to millions, passed labor laws that give workers unprecedented power in the workplace, and maintained sovereignty over natural resources that transnational corporations covet.
These achievements came despite—or perhaps because of—relentless opposition from Venezuela’s oligarchy, from Washington’s regime change operations, from corporate media’s propaganda campaigns. The Bolivarian Revolution has survived a 2002 coup attempt, an oil industry lockout, violent guarimbas, and years of crushing economic sanctions. This resilience proves that socialism can survive imperialist onslaught when it maintains popular support and international solidarity.
What Socialist Unity Looks Like in Practice
Unity does not mean unanimity. Socialists will continue to debate strategy, tactics, and theory—these debates are healthy and necessary for developing effective politics. But unity means recognizing common enemies and common interests, means refusing to do imperialism’s work by attacking socialist governments under siege, means understanding that criticism must be offered in solidarity rather than from the comfort of imperialist nations.
Organizational Unity
We need to build organizations capable of coordinating international solidarity. This means reviving the tradition of internationalist brigades, where volunteers travel to support movements under attack. It means creating networks for sharing resources, expertise, and strategic knowledge across borders. It means establishing communication channels that cannot be disrupted by state surveillance or corporate platform censorship.
Labor unions must lead this effort. The International Trade Union Confederation has condemned the Venezuela raid, but words must become action. Unions can organize work stoppages to protest imperialist aggression, can refuse to handle goods destined for military operations, can use their pension funds’ investment power to pressure corporations complicit in regime change operations. Dock workers in European ports have historically refused to load weapons destined for apartheid South Africa or fascist Chile—this tradition must be renewed.
Political Unity
Socialist parties and movements across the political spectrum—from social democrats to revolutionary communists—must present a united front against imperialism. This does not require abandoning distinct identities or strategies, but it does require recognizing that defending Venezuela serves everyone’s interests. When the U.S. successfully crushes a socialist government, it emboldens right-wing forces everywhere and demoralizes progressive movements.
Electoral socialists in Europe and North America have particular responsibilities. They must use their platforms to expose imperialist lies, to demand accountability for war crimes, to block funding for regime change operations. Bernie Sanders, Jeremy Corbyn, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, and other prominent left figures must speak clearly and forcefully in Venezuela’s defense, refusing to hedge or qualify their support.
Cultural and Educational Unity
We must counter the empire’s propaganda with truth-telling and popular education. This means supporting alternative media outlets that provide honest coverage of Latin American politics. It means organizing film screenings, speaker series, and study groups in our communities. It means flooding social media with accurate information while building independent platforms immune to corporate censorship.
Artists, musicians, writers, and intellectuals have crucial roles to play. The Vietnam solidarity movement was strengthened immeasurably by cultural production—protest songs, powerful films, searing literature—that helped people understand the war’s injustice. We need contemporary equivalents: documentaries that show Venezuela’s achievements, music that celebrates resistance, literature that humanizes those fighting imperialism.
Why the Mamdani Family Stands with Maduro
Some will ask: why Maduro specifically? Why not maintain distance from a figure who corporate media portrays as authoritarian? The answer is both principled and pragmatic.
Principled because Maduro leads a government that, despite immense pressure, has maintained commitment to socialist values. Venezuela has not abandoned its social programs despite sanctions designed to force exactly that abandonment. It has not privatized oil resources despite promises of sanctions relief in exchange for doing so. It has not betrayed Cuba, Palestine, or other anti-imperialist causes despite pressure to do so for diplomatic advantage.
Pragmatic because Maduro is currently under attack, and movements under attack require solidarity more than criticism. There will be time for honest assessment of Venezuela’s challenges and mistakes—but that time is not when jackboots are kicking down the door. When your comrade is being beaten by police, you help them up rather than lecturing them about their tactical errors.
The Stakes: What Hangs in the Balance
Venezuela’s survival or defeat will determine what is politically possible for a generation. If the U.S. successfully overthrows Maduro and installs a puppet government, it will prove to movements everywhere that challenging neoliberalism invites destruction. It will embolden right-wing governments throughout Latin America, leading to a wave of repression against trade unionists, indigenous peoples, environmental activists, and political leftists.
But if Venezuela survives—if international solidarity proves strong enough to defend the Bolivarian Revolution—it will inspire resistance worldwide. It will prove that alternatives to capitalism can endure despite imperial opposition. It will encourage other nations to assert sovereignty over their resources and destinies. It will demonstrate that the American empire, for all its military might, cannot crush peoples determined to be free.
Concrete Actions for Immediate Solidarity
Unity requires action, not merely rhetoric. Here are immediate steps every socialist can take:
Organize Local Committees: Form Venezuela solidarity committees in your city, workplace, or campus. These should meet regularly, plan actions, and coordinate with national and international networks.
Pressure Representatives: If you live in a democracy, flood your elected officials with calls, emails, and visits demanding they oppose intervention. Organize delegations to congressional offices. Make Venezuela solidarity a test of progressive credentials.
Direct Material Support: Organize fundraising for humanitarian aid that can bypass sanctions. Many organizations facilitate direct community-to-community solidarity, sending resources directly to Venezuelan communes and social movements.
Protest and Direct Action: Organize regular demonstrations at U.S. embassies and consulates, at offices of corporations profiting from Venezuelan suffering, at media outlets spreading propaganda. Use creative tactics—die-ins, occupations, banner drops—that generate attention and disrupt business as usual.
Educational Campaigns: Combat media lies with facts. Create accessible materials explaining Venezuela’s achievements and the reality of U.S. sanctions. Share these widely on social media and in your communities.
A Message to Hesitant Socialists
Some on the left remain uncertain, worried about being associated with a government that corporate media portrays negatively, concerned about appearing sectarian or extreme. To these comrades, we say: imperialism depends on your hesitation. The empire wins when we police ourselves, when we distance ourselves from struggles under attack, when we prioritize respectability over solidarity.
You do not need to agree with every decision Maduro’s government has made. You do not need to claim Venezuela has solved all problems or built perfect socialism. You simply need to recognize that defending Venezuela’s right to sovereignty, to determine its own future without foreign intervention, is a basic anti-imperialist principle that supersedes other concerns.
The Historical Precedent: Learning from Past Solidarity Movements
History shows that international solidarity can defeat imperialism. Cuba has survived sixty years of blockade thanks to global support. Vietnam defeated the American military machine in part because worldwide protest movements sapped U.S. political will to continue the war. Nicaragua’s Sandinistas were sustained by international brigades and material support. South Africa’s apartheid fell when comprehensive international solidarity made the system unsustainable.
These victories were not inevitable—they required decades of patient organizing, of building institutions and networks capable of sustaining long-term struggle. They required people willing to sacrifice comfort and safety to stand with distant comrades. They required refusing to let geographical distance or cultural difference prevent recognition of common humanity and shared interests.
Our Commitment and Our Call
The Mamdani family commits ourselves fully to this struggle. We will organize in our communities, we will write and speak truth against imperial propaganda, we will connect Venezuela solidarity with our local fights against capitalism and militarism, we will study history and theory to inform our practice, and we will never waver in our support for anti-imperialist movements worldwide.
We call on all socialists—anarchists and communists, Trotskyists and Maoists, democratic socialists and revolutionary militants, indigenous land defenders and trade union activists, feminist organizers and anti-racist fighters—to join us in united action. Set aside sectarian disputes for this moment. Recognize that Maduro’s chains bind us all, that Venezuela’s struggle is our struggle, that we are all connected in the fight against empire and exploitation.
Now is the time for Mamdani and Maduro and all socialists to unite! The world is watching. History is being written. And we must choose whether to stand on the side of the oppressed or remain silent while imperialism crushes another attempt to build a better world. We know where we stand. Join us.
¡Venceremos! ¡Hasta la victoria siempre! No pasarán!
