VENEZUELA

Venezuela is a country in the north of South America. It is approximately twice the size of California. Venezuela has landscapes that include towering mountains, broad river plains and arid coastal plains with beautiful beaches.

It has a population of 29 million with 3 million living in the capital, Caracas. The primary language spoken is Spanish and 12 percent of the population are considered evangelical Christians.

Venezuela was once a stable democracy and one of the wealthiest countries in Latin America. It has the world’s largest known oil reserves. But Venezuela is turning into a radicalized socialist nation, like Cuba.

In 2018 Venezuela experienced 1 million percent inflation. Food is just plain unavailable. Many Venezuelans line up at grocery stores before dawn, hoping to buy scant necessities like sugar, oil, eggs or flour. Bread shelves are barren and toilet paper is a luxury. The average weight loss is 20 pounds. Families are unable to feed themselves and the government denies the severity of the calamity. The military is in charge of its food system and there is widespread corruption.

Thousands flood the streets to protest the corrupt government.