Fleeting Freedom

The news that filled my timeline Saturday morning was hard to miss. Considering Nigeria was just struck by US attacks and no one really spoke about it, I was confused as to why this strike was so significant and more so why mainstream media cared so much. After doing my research I learned what was going on and some of the background of the situation in Venezuela, albeit at a surface level. I saw Trump parade in his “victory” and shamelessly state his intentions for Venezuela and their oil resources. Like many others, I quickly took this attack for what it was and what it meant for the future. In the same vein, I saw it as a bad thing, especially due to the fact that he illegally invaded and abducted another country’s president. I then thought was this meant for other powerful countries and how they will use or misuse their power.

I kept scrolling on my phone and for every person I saw expressing the same fear or concern, I saw a Venezuelan rejoicing and I couldn’t understand why. “El momento que has esperado toda tu vida” which means the moment I’ve been waiting for my whole life. All I saw was joy and relief from Venezuelans. Eventually I saw an old friend who was born in Venezuela post her and her family and everyone in the picture had a smile then could only come from true joy, so I had to ask how could this possibly be a good thing. The biggest crook in the world came into your country and stole from you. I didn’t the say the last part but it ran through my mind. She replied to me “Of course it’s a good thing”. That’s when I realized this situation is more complex than what my privileged perspective could grasp in a matter of a couple hours. Google research doesn’t account for the decades of pain that these people have endured at the hands of their government.  For them, what happened yesterday wasn’t about geopolitics, it was poetic justice. Someone finally having to face the evil they’ve done. Even though the deliverer of this justice may be someone who has ill intention for their country or resources, justice seems to be served. History shows us that happy endings are few and far between, so any moment of relief is cause for celebration. So right now it’s not for me or anyone else who doesn’t have any roots there to tell them about how they should feel about what happened on Saturday, even if deep down it’s hard to turn away from the thought that history will repeat itself and that the worst may be yet to come. In a world where freedom is only given to a select few, any moment of freedom should be cherished, even if it’s fleeting.