Ep 363 - Venezuela's Unfinished Revolution with Ricardo Vaz

Jan 17, 2026

Ricardo Vaz, a journalist and analyst specializing in Venezuela, shares insights on the Bolivarian Revolution and its real impact beyond media portrayals. He discusses Chávez's rise, the social initiatives that reduced poverty and improved healthcare, and the push for grassroots democracy through communal councils. Vaz delves into the challenges posed by counter-revolutionary forces and how U.S. sanctions have exacerbated the country's economic struggles. His perspective emphasizes the importance of historical context and international solidarity in understanding Venezuela's ongoing struggle.

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INSIGHT

Chávez Recentered Socialist Politics

Ricardo Vaz frames the Bolivarian Revolution as a 21st-century transformative project that revived socialism in Latin America.
Chávez moved from mild reform to openly declaring socialism and anti-imperialism after elite pushback and a 2002 coup attempt.

ANECDOTE

2002 Coup Reversed By Masses

Ricardo Vaz recounts the 2002 coup where the army briefly ousted Chávez and the U.S. initially supported it.
Massive popular mobilization reversed the coup and cemented Chávez's turn toward deeper transformation.

INSIGHT

Rapid Social Gains Changed Political Landscape

Early Bolivarian policies halved poverty and sharply reduced extreme poverty through literacy and healthcare drives.
Social programs like Barrio Adentro and literacy campaigns reshaped everyday life and political support.

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** Further questions about this episode? You’re in luck. Tuesday evening, January 20th, Ricardo Vaz will be with us during Macro ‘n Chill, our online gathering. Find the registration link at the top of our website: realprogressives.org

Steve opens in a subdued mood brought on by the dizzying speed of ‘current events.’ For this episode he’s stepping back and looking at Venezuela. News reports are working hard to create confusion. On social media US citizens claim that kidnapping a sitting president is justified if you don’t like him. Or if he’s socialist.

To understand a situation, it must be considered historically, materially, and as a connected process. With that in mind, Ricardo Vaz of Venezuelanalysis, joins Steve to talk about what the Bolivarian Revolution actually was – on the ground – beyond the familiar US media caricatures. Ricardo walks through key turning points in the Chávez era and the social gains that reshaped everyday life. But there’s a bigger question that haunts every revolutionary project. How do you build new forms of democratic power while the old state machinery, domestic elites, and hostile external forces push back?

(Does this sound familiar? It will if you took part in RP Book Club’s study of State and Revolution)

From there, the conversation follows the oil thread. It’s not a single-cause explanation, but it’s where sovereignty, development, and imperial pressure collide. Steve and Ricardo unpack how the hydrocarbons industry evolved, what “nationalization” really meant in practice, and why the fight over Venezuela’s resources can’t be separated from US strategy in the hemisphere.

They then look into the Maduro years, sanctions, economic siege, and the constant tug-of-war inside Venezuela between survival policies and revolutionary horizons. This includes a clear-eyed look at opposition figures and the narratives that dominate US talking points. The episode closes with a grounded discussion of why Venezuela matters as a 21st-century political experiment, and what meaningful solidarity looks like when the headlines are designed to mislead and misdirect.

Ricardo Vaz grew up in Mozambique with strong political leanings and a clear anti-imperialist outlook, which led him early on to closely follow the Bolivarian Revolution and Chavismo in Venezuela. After living in various countries and continents, he moved to Venezuela in early 2019. Although trained in theoretical physics, he gradually shifted into journalism and political analysis, joining the Venezuela Analysis staff as a writer and editor in 2018. His main interests include sanctions, popular power organizations, and corporate media coverage of Venezuela. He is also a member of grassroots media collectives including Tatuy TV and Utopix.

venezuelanalysis.com

@venanalysis on X