Venezuela once had a vibrant middle class, despite flaws in governance.
However, as two students who grew up in Venezuela explained in a Heritage Foundation webinar, embracing the socialist regimes of Hugo Chavez and Nicolas Maduro eventually led to utter ruin for all but that country’s elite.
Not only was Venezuela impoverished as a whole, but the middle class saw a severe decline in prosperity. Many became so impoverished they were unable to put food on the table.
The two students spoke last Wednesday about their experience growing up in Venezuela and offered a warning about what embracing real socialism actually means.