Why Venezuelans Are Fleeing The Country

Tendrils of smoke filled the air as Sarahay Toti flipped a spatula full of sizzling pork on the grill. It was a rainy Friday night, and there were few customers at the tiny shop where she made and sold arepas, a dish from Toti’s native Venezuela made of cornmeal patties filled with meat and cheese. But she was happy to take any business that came along. This work was new for Toti, a 47-year-old mother of two who had held a well-paid job in human resources for most of her career in Venezuela. A year ago, she and her family sold off their house, car and most of their possessions to move to Ecuador, joining a rapidly swelling group of new Venezuelan immigrants there. “I’ve met people here who are around 60 years old who have started from scratch from Venezuela,” she said. “It’s traumatic.”More…