Rage, pain, and hunger in Venezuela

How a once-proud country descended into chaos

A demonstrator throws a stone at riot police officers during a student protest in Caracas, Venezuela.
(Image credit: REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins)
Kelly Gonsalves
By
published
(Image credit: (EPA/CRISTIAN HERNANDEZ)It wasn't always like this. In 2006, though the country had suffered decades of widespread poverty, hunger, and crime, morale was relatively high. Beloved former Presi)

(Image credit: A Caracas house is decorated with an image of Che Guevara and Hugo Chavez. The text reads: "Fatherland or Death." Chavez wins re-election by the widest margin since 1947.)

(Image credit: A worker at Venezuela's oldest private television station, RCTV, cries after the channel is forced off the air over its criticism of the Chavez government. RCTV was the sole opposition-aligne)

(Image credit: Suspects are searched by police during a raid in a Caracas slum. By this time, Venezuela has one of the world's highest murder rates, with poor neighborhoods bearing the brunt of spiking crim)

(Image credit: A 3-year-old child stands at the door of her shack in a Caracas slum. More than 3.1 million Venezuelans live in inadequate housing in 2011.)

(Image credit: Chavez's coffin is driven through the Caracas streets, filled with mourners. He died of cancer one month after winning another presidential term.)

(Image credit: Anti-government demonstrators in Caracas protest new President Nicolas Maduro, Chavez's hand-picked successor. The graffiti reads: "Maduro we are going for you.")

(Image credit: Hundreds of people line up outside a state-run grocery store in Caracas, as Venezuela's food shortages worsen. The best chance at buying food is to line up in the middle of the night, but it)

(Image credit: A child plays with belongings left behind by his relatives in San Antonio, Venezuela. Some Venezuelans begin seeking food or fleeing government abuse by crossing the border into Colombia.)

(Image credit: A woman carrying a child and packages of pasta tries to escape a food riot — a common occurrence — outside a supermarket in Caracas.)

(Image credit: Police officers detain a protester in Caracas during a rally to demand a referendum to remove President Maduro.)

(Image credit: Demonstrators run from tear gas during an opposition rally in Caracas. Both government and opposition forces have taken to using tear gas during protests. Police sometimes fire water cannons)

(Image credit: Tens of thousands of Venezuelans participate in a large-scale protest, called the "mother of all marches" by organizers, in Caracas. At least 22 people die.)

(Image credit: A woman and a girl run away as riot security forces and demonstrators clash in Tariba, Venezuela.)

(Image credit: Demonstrators stand next to a burning bus near an anti-government protest in Caracas.)

Kelly Gonsalves
Kelly Gonsalves

Kelly Gonsalves is a sex and culture writer exploring love, lust, identity, and feminism. Her work has appeared at Bustle, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, and more, and she previously worked as an associate editor for The Week. She's obsessed with badass ladies doing badass things, wellness movements, and very bad rom-coms.

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