Catalogue Number
NMLH.2025.7.1
Object Name
t-shirt
Place
Venezuela
People
Simon Bolivar, Nicolas Maduro, Hugo Chavez
Events
Venezuela 2017 Constitutional Crisis
Description
A blue t-shirt with a red and gold armour breastplate design on the front. In the centre of the chest is a medal depicting Simon Bolivar hanging from a ribbon in the colours of the Venezuelan flag. The reverse has white text saying '#Yo soy Libertador'.
This t-shirt was worn during pro-democracy protests in Venezuela during the late 2010s. It features the face of Simon Bolivar, who led the country to independence from Spanish colonisation in the 1810s, and is known as 'El Libertador' (the Liberator). The text on the t-shirt means "I am the Liberator" drawing a comparison between Bolivar and the protestors.
Venezuela had been experiencing severe economic and societal crisis since Nicolas Maduro assumed the presidency in 2014 following the death of President Hugo Chavez. Maduro's rule and ideological policies were viewed as contributing to poverty, shortages of staple foods, high inflation and high amounts of criminal violence. Protests repeatedly broke out over political issues including the results of the 2015 parliamentary elections, to attempt the removal of President Maduro in 2016, and a constitutional crisis in 2017 when the pro-Maduro Supreme Tribunal of Justice dissolved the National Assembly (parliament) in an attempt to take over the legislature and criminalise members of the opposition. The high point for protests was the so called Mother of All Marches which took place on 19 April 2017 following the attempted coup by the Supreme Tribunal of Justice, with 6 million protesters across the country and around 3 million in Caracas, the capital city. The protestors were faced with violent repression by pro-government paramilitaries and the military.
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