Cash From America Is Crucial to Venezuela’s Protesters
- Expats pony up small sums for gas masks and radios at home
- Maduro government responds with crackdown on private couriers
Why Venezuela's Many Crises Keep Getting Worse
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Helmets and goggles come via private couriers or tucked in carry-on bags. Portable radios and gas masks are smuggled across the border or sent on charter planes.
The near-daily demonstrations that have rocked Venezuela for about two months are sustained by rivulets of material and money that coalesce into a stream of support. Crowd-funding websites like GoFundMe and Generosity are awash in campaigns for protesters -- some raising tens of thousands of dollars -- and Amazon wish lists of gear circulate on Twitter, Instagram and Whatsapp.