Protest denouncing US action in Venezuela draws over 100 to downtown Raleigh
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- About 100 protesters gathered at Moore Square to denounce U.S. strikes in Venezuela
- Groups including PSL, Code PINK and DSA organized chants and a downtown march
- Protesters argued strikes aim to seize oil; some Venezuelans celebrated Maduro's removal
Roughly 100 people gathered at Moore Square in downtown Raleigh Saturday afternoon to protest U.S. airstrikes in Venezuela and the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
The U.S. bombed several military and government sites in Caracas Saturday morning, President Donald Trump announced on social media. Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were taken prisoner and flown out of Venezuela. The two will face drug trafficking charges in the U.S., accusing them of narco-terrorism and funneling drugs into the U.S., The Miami Herald reported. Maduro denounced the strikes as an “attack against the sovereignty of Venezuela.”
The protest in Raleigh — sponsored by activist groups like the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), Code PINK, Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) and Palestinian Youth Movement — joined others in dozens of cities across the U.S. to oppose U.S. intervention in Venezuela.
The rally began at Moore Square with chants of “hands off Venezuela” and “no more coups, no more wars, Venezuela isn’t yours” before protesters marched down Hargett Street and through downtown Raleigh. Speakers claimed that the U.S. intervention wasn’t about stopping the flow of drugs but seizing the South American country’s oil. Protesters held signs of “stop bombing for oil” and “no blood for oil” while they marched.
DSA organizers said they were ready to mobilize a protest because they had been expecting an escalation of the U.S.-Venezuela conflict since the U.S. began airstrikes on boats off the coast of Venezuela, claiming that the boats were carrying illicit drugs.
Carl Hintz, a member of the Triangle DSA chapter, said the boat strikes were against international law and amounted to murder. Seeing the bombing of Venezuela Saturday motivated him to come out and protest.
“People don’t want to see another war,” Hintz said. “So I think that’s why a lot of people turned out today, even though it’s cold and a little bit rainy.”
Paola Davila, a member of the PSL, immigrated to the U.S. from Venezuela in 2006 when she was 12 years old. She knows of family members back in Venezuela who are waiting in line to get groceries and gas in case the country shuts down. She knows of others who are celebrating Maduro’s removal from power.
Davila herself is not as bullish. Hearing Trump’s comments that the U.S. will run Venezuela until the country is stabilized, she said she feared the outcome of U.S. occupation in other countries.
“Historically, we know that this is something that could escalate into just like more bombs [and] just the killing of innocent people,” Davila said. “So I think that is where I am most worried about, of where that could lead. And for Venezuela to be free — to be led by the people.”
Carlos Benucci is optimistic. Benucci and roughly 25 other Venezuelans came to Moore Square after the protest to celebrate Maduro’s removal. Several wore U.S.-Venezuela half-and-half flags draped around their neck and waist.
In Venezuela, Benucci was a politician who was active within the anti-Maduro opposition. He showed The News & Observer a post on his Instagram of him leading an anti-Maduro rally. Benucci said he and his family fled to the U.S. five years ago “because the regime of Nicolas Maduro was looking for me and for my family to kill me.”
“We didn’t get any freedom — freedom of speech, any freedom,” Benucci said. “We didn’t get that in Venezuela.”
Benucci said he and others had been fighting since Hugo Chavez’s presidency to bring democracy to Venezuela. He echoed Trump and Republicans’ accusations that Maduro led a “narco-terrorist regime” and disagreed with the notion that the U.S. invaded Venezuela.
“This is not about Trump,” Benucci said. “This is about our people.”
This story was originally published January 3, 2026 at 8:30 PM.
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