AI-Summary – News For Tomorrow
Venezuelans in Doral, Florida, are reacting to Maria Corina Machado’s Nobel Peace Prize with mixed emotions. While celebrating her recognition for fighting for democracy in Venezuela, some worry it won’t help Venezuelans facing deportation in the U.S. Machado’s alignment with Trump’s Venezuela policy means she’s unlikely to advocate for their protection. The prize is seen as a boost to the opposition movement against Nicolás Maduro, but the future for Venezuelans in the US remains uncertain. Community leaders express concern that her focus remains on regime change in Venezuela rather than the plight of exiles.
News summary provided by Gemini AI.
DORAL, Fla. — DORAL, Fla. (AP) — Venezuelans in “Little Venezuela” — the largest home for the country’s natives in the United States — are welcoming the news that opposition leader Maria Corina Machado won the Nobel Peace Prize with bittersweetness as deportation threats loom.
While Machado’s Nobel win is being met with joy, there’s also acknowledgement that it will do little to improve the situation Venezuelans at risk of deportation face in the U.S., as the former opposition presidential candidate has aligned herself with President Donald Trump’s policy on Venezuela.
Machado, honored for her struggle to achieve a democratic transition in Venezuela as President Nicolás Maduro took power, wrote on X hours after her win dedicating her prize to “the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump for his decisive support of our cause!”
Frank Carreño, the former president of the Venezuelan American Chamber of Commerce who has lived in Doral, the city known as “Little Venezuela,” for 18 years, was pleased with the news that Machado won the Nobel Prize but warned that Machado will not pressure Trump to protect Venezuelans living in the U.S.
“She sees the United States government as part of her strategy to restore democracy to Venezuela,” the Venezuelan American said. “She’s in that camp, not in this camp.”
José Antonio Colina, a retired Venezuelan military officer who arrived in South Florida in 2003, said the Nobel Prize represents a recognition to Machado’s fight for democracy and liberty in Venezuela.
“We hope that the award can give impetus or strength to remove Nicolas Maduro from power,” said Colina, a refugee in the U.S.
Before leaving, she placed a poster with Machado’s name, her photo and the title “The Nobel Prize 2025″ and the message “#VenezuelaLibre” in one of the restaurant’s windows.
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