Surrounded by a sea of Venezuelan flags, Miluixsy Miranda led a congo line in the parking lot of a Katy strip mall Saturday night as music blared from a speaker system tucked in the trunk of a car.
Early that morning, the U.S. carried out a large-scale strike against Venezuela, according to President Donald Trump, and detained Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. The two are now facing criminal charges.
Miranda, 27, came to the U.S. about two and a half years ago, after spending seven years as an immigrant in Panama. She was among the dozens of Venezuelans who gathered outside a Latin American grocery store in Katy on Saturday to celebrate Maduro's capture.
"Being an immigrant is something that has been really difficult for many of us, but we're happy – it's a miracle from God," she said in Spanish.
Houston hasdeep tiesto Venezuela. It's home to the third-largest population of Venezuelan immigrants in the U.S., according toMigration Policy Institute, with more than 50,000 migrants in the greater metropolitan region. As the headquarters for many major energy companies, the city could be at the center of American efforts to tap Venezuelan oil reserves in the wake of U.S. intervention.
In the immediate aftermath of Maduro's capture, many Venezuelans in Houston remained cautiously optimistic.
"It's a lot of emotions, you know, altogether happiness, but at the same time, a little worry and we're a little nervous," said Hector Machuca, who moved to the U.S. in 2016 with his wife and two kids.
The 44-year-old joined the celebration in Katy on Saturday with the hope that Maduro's ousting will lead to a better future for both his home country and the region.
"We're excited because this is the beginning of the end," Machuca said. "This all just the starting of something that is going to be bigger than us."
Exactly how that transition will play out remains to be seen.
Trump said the U.S. would "run" Venezuela for a time and American companies would take over the country's oil infrastructure. However, Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, who was sworn in as interim president, said sherejectedU.S. control over the country.
Many people in Houston said they also rejected U.S. involvement in Venezuela.
On Sunday, protesters lined an intersection across the street from the Galleria Mall, waving signs that read "No blood for oil" and "Hands off Venezuela."
"Not a penny, not a dollar. We won't pay for war and slaughter," the protesters chanted.
Caleb Kurowski, an organizer with the Party for Socialism and Liberation – which coordinated the protest – drew comparisons to U.S. involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"I think we already can see the results of U.S. interventions across the world and we don't think that Venezuela will end up any different," Kurowski said.
Andres Gomez said he came to the protest to learn more about different viewpoints as a neutral party. Gomez, whose parents are from Colombia, said he knows many Venezuelans both in Colombia and the U.S. who fled Maduro's government.
"This is a very complicated issue,” Gomez said. “Seeing all the different reactions got me wanting to just come out and see what everybody's talking about.”
Gomez came to the protest with a friend, Travis Lejune, who had a different opinion.
Lejune said he understands why many Venezuelans are celebrating Maduro's removal. But he opposes U.S. intervention, which he says is to blame for dictators like Maduro.
"U.S. intervention is what's causing this," he said. "And so, us coming in and illegally kidnapping the dictator isn't the answer."
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