Why de-escalation matters and how movements should respond

This is an unlocked version of the Patreon episode "Venezuela Pt. 5: Monroe Doctrine 2.0 w/ José Luis Granados Ceja." You can listen to our entire 5-part series on Venezuela by subscribing to our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/upstreampodcast

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In Part 5 of our ongoing series on Venezuela, José Luis Granados Ceja joins us to discuss the context within which the US's aggression toward Venezuela is taking place—what we can think of as a Monroe Doctrine 2.0. José Luis Granados Ceja is a journalist with Drop Site News based in Mexico City who has been covering Venezuela for 20 years.

Our conversation begins with an update on the most recent situation in Venezuela. We then go on to discuss the regional implications of the United States' air and sea blockade of Venezuela and how it impacts its allies in the region and how the current blockade escalates the already existing sanctions regime. We discuss the regional layout of Latin America and how different countries in the region are responding to the escalating bifurcation of the region between the United States and China, taking a close look at Mexico and the Sheinbaum administration's approach to this new Cold War. We end the conversation with a look forward and with a call to solidarity with the people and government of Venezuela as it stares down the gunships of the United States.

Further resources:

• Dropsite News
• José Luis Granados Ceja on Twitter
• "War of the entire people": Venezuela's Grassroots Rise to Resist Trump's Naval Blockade
• Mexico and the Fourth Transformation
• Edwin Ackerman

Related episodes:

• Listen to our ongoing series on Venezuela
• Listen to our ongoing series on China
• Listen to our ongoing series on Mexico
• US Labor & Imperialism Pt. 1: the War Against Communism w/ Jeff Schuhrke

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