The campaign invites you and/or your organization to endorse this call against the illegal, unjust
and cruel sanctions being inflicted on the people of Venezuela. >> Please visit: www.afgj.org <<
Ordinary Venezuelans are hurt by sanctions imposed by the US and Canada
The elderly grandmother who cannot get insulin for her diabetes, the child who is undernourished
during an important stage of development, families who cannot afford to feed and clothe their
children as a result of hyperinflation. US and Canadian sanctions are precipitating a rapid economic
decline in Venezuela and ordinary Venezuelans are the primary victims.
Unilateral sanctions are illegal
On May 21, the day after the re-election of Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro, the US
further expanded economic sanctions against Venezuela. Both the US and Canada have sanctions
targeting senior Venezuelan government officials. These sanctions severely hamper the government’s
ability to engage with international financial entities. Furthermore, unilateral sanctions violate
the human rights of the Venezuelan people and are illegal under the charters of the OAS and
the UN. The imposed sanctions prevent the government from borrowing money from major
financial institutions and from repatriating dividends earned by state subsidiaries abroad,
restricting Venezuela’s ability to import vital foods and medicines. The US and Canada hypocritically
claim to be concerned about the humanitarian situation in Venezuela, while their sanctions regimes
are deliberately designed to asphyxiate the Venezuelan economy.
Sanctions are a form of economic war and can be a prelude to actual war
In addition to the economic war being waged against Venezuela through sanctions, recent reports
as well as public statements by US officials have made clear that a military option against Venezuela
is under serious consideration.
As people in the US and Canada, we have the responsibility to end our governments’ practice
of illegal foreign intervention, including the current economic sanctions against the people of
Venezuela. These sanctions are a collective punishment designed to create enough human misery to
bring about the overthrow of a democratically-elected government, including via a military coup.
Economic sanctions violate Venezuela’s national sovereignty and the basic rights of Venezuelan
citizens.
The campaign invites you and/or your organization to endorse this call against
the illegal, unjust and cruel sanctions being inflicted on the people of Venezuela.
Initial Signers
• Akinyele K. Umoja, Founding Member, New Afrikan People’s Organization
• Alexander Main, Director for International Policy, Center for Economic and Policy Research
• Alliance for Global Justice
• Common Frontiers
• Dan Kovalik, Adjunct Professor of International Human Rights, University of
Pittsburgh School of Law
• Fire This Time Movement for Social Justice – Venezuela Solidarity Campaign
• Frederick B. Mills, Ph.D., Professor of Philosophy Department of History and
Government Bowie State University
• Gerardo Renique, Associate Professor, City College (SUNY)
• Gregory Wilpert, www.venezuelanalysis.com
• International Committee for Peace, Justice and Dignity
• Ivan Dario Hernandez, Artist, Venezuela
• Popular Resistance
• Shirley Pate, DC Venezuela Action Network
• Shontae Cannon–Buckley, Co-owner, Burning Books, Buffalo, New York
• Stansfield Smith, Chicago ALBA Solidarity
• Susan Scott, Member, National Lawyers Guild
• Task Force on the Americas
• Teri Mattson, Founder, The Intrepid News Fund
• Tom Gallagher, Chair, San Francisco Progressive Democrats of America
• William Camacaro, Venezuelan Activist/Radio Host WBAI Pacifica Network
