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I was born and raised in a country where the government built public housing and converted private housing into communes; where the state managed grocery stores, controlled prices and expropriated the wealth of the “rich” in the name of social justice. Weapons were prohibited and “hate speech” — which is, any criticism of power — was punished by law.
I lived in the dream that a lot of New Yorkers want for their city. And I had to flee to survive.
Growing up in Venezuela meant being raised among ruins and nostalgia — a country suspended in the memory of what it once was, all while enduring the wreckage of what it had become.
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As a teenager, I would go to the grocery store with my mom in search of eggs or corn flour to make arepas, the most traditional breakfast in Venezuela. But time and time again, we’d find the shelves completely empty. I can’t tell you how many times that happened. And every time, she would remind me that years ago, this wasn’t the case — she used to have plenty of options, with multiple brands to choose from. But now, there was nothing. The country she remembered no longer existed.
Venezuela was one of the most prosperous nations on the planet: in 1950 it had the fourth-highest GDP per capita in the world, with foreign investment and a rising middle class.
How did Venezuela go from an oil power to having one of the highest inflations in the world? How does a country reach the point where my father — an economist and owner of a small business — and my mother — who had doctorates in education — would have to stop eating meat to be able to feed their children? It’s quite simple. People embraced the same socialist ideas that are popular in New York City right now.
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Before everything collapsed in Venezuela, I got to know the United States: I was amazed by the cars, the technology, and even the absurd variety of Oreos. I got to visit Disneyland at 6 years old. What I did not know at that time was that, 15 years later, my family and I would flee Venezuela after I was accused of terrorism and obtained political asylum under the first Trump administration.
That same year, I visited New York — the city that I saw multiple times in movies. I was impressed. The skyscrapers, the infrastructure, walking through Times Square and seeing the number of brands… It was the symbol of individual progress. Today, that incredible city is flirting with the same ideas of the country that forced me to escape.
Freezing rent prices? Building more public housing? Converting private properties into communes? I’ve heard those ideas before. President Hugo Chávez did the same in Venezuela with his “Gran Misión Vivienda Venezuela” program: he promised to end market abuses, offered free housing and began to nationalize private properties. The result? Collapsed investment, poorly built homes, widespread corruption and millions living in terrible conditions.
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Free public transportation? I saw it. In Venezuela, Chávez did it: he declared transportation a “right” and fully subsidized it. The prices were so “low” that they didn’t even cover basic operating costs.
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What happened? The system collapsed. Without maintenance, the buses stopped circulating. Today, millions of people spend hours in line to get on one bus, if it arrives.
Government grocery stores? In Venezuela, it was called Mercal: a state network that soon became synonymous with long lines, expired food, scarcity and smuggling handled by the regime. Only those loyal to the party ate.
And the idea that billionaires shouldn’t exist? Chávez said the same thing. He expropriated those who generated employment and progress, and, in the end, the only rich individuals were the politicians.
I could continue listing each socialist promise made, and the result remains the same: Socialism always fails. It doesn’t matter the country or who applies it. It brings scarcity, repression and ruin. But it’s not just a practical mistake. It is a perverse ideology that attacks freedom, property and human dignity.
The United States was not built with imposed equality, but with freedom. We are not entitled to happiness, but have the right to pursue our own happiness. And for those of us who come from the darkness, that’s all you need.
I lived Mamdani’s socialist dream, and I had to flee to survive.
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