Orlando, FL — The Florida chapter of the National Organization for Women (FL NOW) joins global human rights advocates in condemning the Trump administration’s aggressive military deployment to Venezuela and the Caribbean. Framed as a counter-narcotics operation, this escalation is a thinly veiled attempt to destabilize sovereign nations, criminalize migration, and expand U.S. imperial reach under the guise of national security.
“This is not about drug interdiction—it’s about domination,” said Julie Kent, President of FL NOW. “We reject the militarization of foreign policy and the weaponization of the drug war to justify intervention in Latin America. These tactics echo a long legacy of colonial violence and racialized control.”
The deployment includes warships, submarines, and thousands of Marines stationed near Venezuelan waters, despite UN data showing minimal drug trafficking through the region. Meanwhile, the administration has doubled the bounty on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, escalating tensions without a clear diplomatic strategy.
FL NOW calls for:
- Immediate demilitarization of the Caribbean region
- Investment in diplomacy, humanitarian aid, and climate resilience
- An end to the criminalization of migration and the militarization of borders
- Accountability for U.S. interventions that violate international law and human rights
“We stand with Afro-Caribbean, Indigenous, and Latino/a communities resisting militarism and extraction,” said Debbie Deland, VP FL NOW. “Our liberation is bound together. We demand a foreign policy rooted in justice, not conquest. Bullying and Wars are unacceptable especially for women and children suffer the most from the crimes of war.”
FL NOW urges elected officials, advocacy organizations, and everyday Floridians to speak out against this dangerous escalation and to build coalitions that center peace, sovereignty, and abolitionist values.
