Venezuelans Celebrate In Doral

According to 2021 U.S. Census data analyzed by the Pew Research Center, about 640,000 people of Venezuelan origin lived in the U.S., including both foreign-born immigrants and U.S.-born people of Venezuelan ancestry. More recent analyses suggest the total Venezuelan diaspora in the U.S. (including everyone who identifies with Venezuelan origin) may be between 800,000 and 900,000, with Florida being the largest center.

Doral, a suburb of Miami, has such a high concentration of Venezuelan immigrants that it has often been called “Doralzuela.” Census estimates indicate the total population of Doral is around 76,000–80,000, and more than a third of its residents (27,000) are Venezuelan immigrants, making them a major demographic group in the city.

When Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were captured in a U.S. military raid in Caracas this past weekend, the people of Doral came out to celebrate. Photographer Gary Firstenberg also came out to capture their colorful jubilation.

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It's apparent from these photos that the initial response in Doral was a colorful wave of elation, but the people of Venezuela are facing many challenges. According to author/journalist Robert Bryce, an expert in how energy systems function in the real world, "When US military forces swept into Caracas early Saturday morning to capture Nicolás Maduro, among the first targets hit were, predictably, electricity targets. The fastest way to sow confusion in a society is to shut down or destroy its electric grid," a tactic the US military has been using "in nearly every conflict since the Korean War." 

EdNote: In 1950, Venezuela’s economy was ranked as the fourth-richest in the world by GDP per capita, ahead of most nations except the United States, Switzerland, and New Zealand.

Pray for the people of Venezuela.