By Gina Martinez
Queens business owners are coming together to send aid to Venezuelans injured during violent protest amid the economic crisis gripping the South American country.
Students at Central University of Venezuela in Caracas are behind the medicine collection. They have set up collection centers in cities across Venezuela and in cities outside the country with large Venezuelan communities, including New York City, Miami and Houston.
Their Instagram page, Primerosauxilioscv, provides updates and information about locations where people can drop off medical supplies, including bandages, peroxide, eye drops and Fenoterol for asthma.
Marian Rueda, owner of 1080 Brew, a cafe in Ridgewood, and her co-worker, Pia Paez, heard what the students at Central University of Venezuela were doing and reached out to help in New York City. They are both from the city of Merida and have witnessed, firsthand, and through family accounts, the devastation the country is facing.
The three drop-off centers in Queens are 1080 Brew, located at 1080 Wyckoff Ave.; Arepas Cafe, at 33-07 36th Ave. in Astoria; and Sol Dance Center, at 30-16 Steinway St., also in Astoria. There are several others across the city.
“We knew what was happening in the country so we wanted to see how we could help,” Rueda said. “All these people made profiles on instagram and we started looking into what was happening. We saw they were collecting in Miami and Pia asked why don’t we do the same, so she got together with a few people online and they organized a collection center in New York. In the end, it all worked out.”
The first shipment was sent Sunday.
“On April 19, there’s big march in Caracas, but we want people to keep coming in and sending stuff after the first shipment then well keep sending it,” said Rueda.
The medical supplies are meant to aid protesters in Caracas. Thousands of Venezuelans have gathered in the capital in anti-government protests, calling for a new presidential election. Venezuela, once South America’s richest country, is now in the midst of a severe economic depression. The country now has one of the world’s highest murder rate, and an extreme shortage of basic foods and medicine. The economic downfall began in 2014 with the sharp decline of global oil prices. The resulting shortage in oil revenue, along with other factors, led to inflation. President Nicholas Maduro has blamed the United States’ business elite for the recession and has refused to step down despite heavy opposition and calls for a referendum.
Recently, protesters have clashed with the National Guard, resulting in over 100 people being arrested and five people killed amid the protests. Rueda said the supplies were a necessity. National Guard troops have been aggressive with protesters, using brute force and tear gas. She said the supplies help keep protesters going, a necessity if anything is going to change.
For more information on how to help protestors, contact the initiative at unida
Reach Gina Martinez by e-mail at gmart
