Mothers around the world have been captivated by the developments in Venezuela. The military prowess and technology were impressive. The seamless operation was a cause for patriotism. But why are mothers so focused on what is happening in Venezuela? Because mothers and children bear the cost of bad government and suffer the most when a nation becomes unstable and unsafe.
What has played out on the political stage in Venezuela is one of every mother's worst nightmares: a nation that descended into corruption, greed, and international crime. For years, we have watched as millions of Venezuelans have been forced to flee their homes. Mothers, no matter where they live or what their political opinions are, are united in wanting two basic conditions for their children: safety and opportunity.
No one has expressed this desire in the hearts of mothers like María Corina Machado, a mother who has advocated for peace in Venezuela for years. She risked her life under a brutal regime and continued to bring attention to the plight of the most vulnerable. It was only in December that Machado finally left her beloved country under strict secrecy. She traveled a dangerous and clandestine route to receive the Nobel Peace Prize.
The committee awarded her this recognition "for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy."
Expressing the plight of so many of her countrymen, Machado gave a face to the almost nine million Venezuelans who have fled their homes. She told reporters, "Mothers beg to see their children again. Grandparents say they don't want to die before meeting their grandchildren in person." The lack of basic infrastructure and security, the destruction of opportunity, and the civic life that allows families to flourish have ruptured families and scattered them around the world.
Unlike many of the critics of Nicolás Maduro and his predecessor Hugo Chávez, Machado is unafraid to name the root cause that has wrought so much suffering for Venezuelans. She argues persuasively that the socialism of these dictators led to not only the collapse of the economy but also gave rise to the human trafficking, meddling of hostile foreign powers, and the international narcoterrorism that prompted the U.S. to intervene this year.
What is at the heart of socialism? The same atheism, hatred, and destruction that define Communism. As Communism gets a flashy rebrand with the new socialists on the rise in many of our U.S. cities, moms need to hold the line. Communism is evil. We have seen the lessons in history time and again, as in Venezuela right now: under Communist rule, faith and the family are jeopardized, injustice gains a foothold, and a beloved homeland is destroyed.
Americans once proudly stood united against the spread of Communism and refused to allow it in our great nation. The election of Zohran Mamdani, an avowed socialist, as the mayor of New York City, should have been a wake-up call. People will try to say that Mamdani is not a communist, and he has even tried to deflect the title.
Mike Gonzalez, the Angeles T. Arredondo E Pluribus Unum Senior Fellow at The Heritage Foundation, explained to Fox News Digital last fall that Mamdani is "absolutely a communist" who "repeats lines out of the 'Communist Manifesto' and other writings by Karl Marx."
Gonzalez went on to clarify, "When Marxists today say they are socialists, they usually want to convey the impression that they believe in elections and not just in shooting your way into power." There is, in the end, often no difference. Gonzalez noted, "Of course, that election often ends up being the last free and fair one. Witness Venezuela."
Almost a third of the people of Venezuela have fled. A once prosperous land is unrecognizable. María Corina Machado is a courageous mother with a mother's heart for her people. Mothers around the world should pay attention and fight Communism in all its forms. Mothers know what is at stake when greed rules, governments crumble, and a nation collapses. Women and children suffer the most in a society in collapse.
As the founder of Moms for America and cofounder of Moms for Freedom World, I applaud Machado's work to bring peace to Venezuela. By refusing to cow down to the socialism that destroyed her country, Machado is one of the few voices offering real solutions. American mothers should not be lulled into the false promises of socialists courting voters in our country. We must not bend to the bullying tactics of communist propaganda demanding we all conform. Americans, indeed, people of any nation, should be able to unite in the call for peace and prosperity, freedom from tyranny, and, above all, security and opportunity for our children.
María Corina Machado deserves the honors she has received for her work in Venezuela. Wherever the destructive ideas of Communism take hold—whether you call it Socialism or Communism—violence and injustice have always, I repeat, always followed. Mothers know the needs of the vulnerable and our obligation to the future. We cannot let that terrible fate come for our children.