Americans took to the streets of Chicago and Washington on Saturday to protest the U.S. military intervention in Venezuela, even as Venezuelan migrants in New York gathered to celebrate the removal of Nicolás Maduro from power.
Holding signs that read “No Blood for Oil,” “No U.S. War on Venezuela” and “Hands Off Latin America,” a crowd of several hundred people gathered in Federal Plaza in Chicago as night fell. They called the operation to remove Nicolás Maduro, the ousted Venezuelan leader, an act of imperialism that Americans did not vote for, carried out without required Congressional approval.
“I’m 37 and grew up with the Iraq wars,” said Katrina Denny. “This morning, I was like, ‘Oh my God, we’re doing it again.’”
She said she thought that protests would grow if the Trump administration continued to use military force in Venezuela. “They filled half the plaza tonight on short notice, but this is only the beginning,” she said. “If this continues, I’m sure there will be many more events and larger ones.”
Many protesters expressed suspicion of the White House’s motives. “If Maduro wasn’t legally elected, that’s not for us to say,” said Adela Cruz, 51. “It just seems like a ploy to get oil.”
Jonny Bishop, 28, said he was worried for the men and women in the military. “As someone who teaches high school, my kids are the ones who may have to go to war,” he said, adding that with all of the other problems facing Americans, “going to war is the last thing we need.”
After the rally in Federal Plaza, the Chicago police allowed protesters to march up Dearborn Street to Wacker Drive, near Trump Tower Chicago.
In Washington, people on both sides of the issue gathered for separate afternoon rallies near the White House.
At one of them, dozens of opponents of the intervention chanted anti-Trump slogans. One of the organizers, Morgan Artyukhina, 38, said their message was “that this is a war that is being waged by the Trump administration, not just in contravention of U.S. law and international law, but also, falsely in the name of the American people.”
A few blocks away, a smaller group celebrated the capture of Mr. Maduro by U.S. troops.
Draped in a Venezuelan flag, Leonardo Angulo, 35, danced near a statue of Simón Bolivar, who helped free Venezuela from Spanish imperial rule. Mr. Angulo, who has lived in the United States for eight years, said he and his family came out “to celebrate, and gather with my people, because we share this feeling, this feeling of joy, of happiness, of hope most of all.”
Still, there was an undercurrent of anxiety, which one person in the crowd attributed to concerns that federal agents would appear and detain the Venezuelans present at the rally.
In New York, Venezuelan migrants described a mix of euphoria, relief and guarded hope after years of exile.
Beatriz Hernández danced in Times Square as a group of 100 gathered in Midtown, waving flags and calling family members back home.
Ms. Hernández, 60, said the moment felt transformative for the Venezuelan diaspora forced to emigrate because of poverty and lack of freedom during Maduro’s administration.
“It’s a great joy, the news we received,” said Ms. Hernández, who is originally from Maracaibo, Venezuela. “We haven’t slept since 3 a.m. It’s almost 6 p.m. and I don’t think we’ll be sleeping anytime soon because of the adrenaline.”
Ms. Hernández arrived in New York four years ago after a long journey that she said included crossing the Darién Gap on foot before reaching the U.S. border, where she requested asylum.
“The news is a hope of being able to return safely to our country,” she said. “I think that now I will be able to see my daughters who stayed there, and that in the not-too-distant future I will be able to return to my country and hug my sister.”
Lucia Coronel, 30, who is originally from Maracay, left Venezuela nine years ago and first emigrated to Colombia. She arrived in New York, where she requested asylum, three years ago.
“Now I don’t care about asylum,” Coronel said. “I feel a relief that opens up the possibility of returning to our homes voluntarily and safely. We didn’t emigrate by choice, we emigrated out of necessity.”
Other Venezuelans were more measured.
“We’ve gone through sadness and joy,” said Kimberly Castillo, 32, who is also from Maracay. “Sadness because nobody wants to see their country being bombed by another country. We are sad about the people who were caught in the middle, but are joyous knowing now there is the possibility for better times for my country.”
Robert Chiarito reported from Chicago and Adam Sella from Washington, D.C.
Adam Sella covers breaking news for The Times in Washington.
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