How the Hills Came Down in Venezuela and Elected Hugo Chavez, Pt. I

Before Hugo Chavez arrived to power in Venezuela, there was a strangely popular saying among the country’s citizens: “Cuando bajen los cerros.” Translated, it means, “when the hills come down.” This was a reference to the day when the poorest of the barrios, who live on the hills and mountainsides of the urban cities of Venezuela, would emerge from their homes to make elected officials pay for decades of political exclusion and social inequality. More…