On the occasion of this congress, our correspondent Belen de los Santos interviews Grayson Walker, U.S. Attorney and Political Analyst.
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00:00And as the first date of the Anif, fascist youth and students who work congress is on their way
00:04to Caracas. We go live for updates with our correspondent Belén de los Santos.
00:10Hi Belén, tell us all the details you can share with us.
00:19Hello studios, we are here, we continue here in Caracas at the Youth Congress of the Anti-Fascist
00:27Congress that is underway here in Caracas as Venezuela has summoned over 1,000 delegates
00:35that is from 70 countries and this was the first day of the congress. We are here, we continue to
00:41see the activities that are underway, delegates from all over the world as we were saying,
00:47specifically from the global south but really from everywhere that come here to share their
00:54perspectives, their fights in their own territories, in their own countries to analyze
01:00and discuss what does the fight against fascism mean today, mean in every country, in every
01:07territory, at a world context that we know is very complex and many countries have suffered
01:13the consequences from this. So this congress summons the youth to come together and think
01:19of possible alternatives to really face these challenges and with us at this moment we have
01:25Grayson Walker, he is a law graduate from the United States, an attorney and also a political
01:33analyst. So first of all thank you Grayson for joining us in Tell Us Your English and to begin
01:38I would like to ask you about your experience, how have you lived the day, the experience of
01:44really joining together with other delegates from all over the world? Well first of all thank you
01:48for having me on this channel and for welcoming me to Venezuela. I'm honored to be here as a part
01:53of an American delegation. Our country obviously has a very unique role especially as it concerns
01:59world imperialism so I'm very happy to be here. Regarding my impressions of the country and just
02:04being here, it's one thing to be reading about anti-imperialism, to be writing about it, to be
02:11working on this outside but to be here in the center of the Bolivarian revolution, to be amidst
02:17so many anti-imperialist students and youth, it really shows you that Chavismo is not dead
02:23and the revolution is living on not just here in Venezuela but it's inspiring people around the
02:28world, not just from Russia, Vietnam, Iran but also us in the United States who are looking for some
02:34alternative to the two-party duopoly which is as alien to us as it is the countries that it occupies.
02:41Of course and as we were saying we're living at some very particular and difficult times around
02:47the world with for example an ongoing genocide that is happening right now. Palestine is one of
02:53the main topics of discussion, it's around the world, we see it in t-shirts, we see people
02:58walking around with flags and it's been a worldwide struggle to denounce the genocide,
03:05to denounce the financing for example of not only the genocide but other armed conflicts around the
03:11world. So from an analyst's perspective, what does this sort of congress that brings together
03:18experiences from the global south, experiences of resistance, what does this mean and what's
03:24the importance of this at a moment like this? I think there's two things that are very important
03:29for international solidarity regarding the genocide and also the ongoing wars, not just
03:35regarding the ongoing funding of the Ukrainian regime and the Russian special military operation
03:40but also these other wars around the world that are part of imperialism. The first important thing
03:46is that it gives a voice to the people of these conflicts who are not otherwise able to be
03:51expressed in the mainstream media that's dominated the imperial core. So by giving these people in
03:57Palestine and Gaza a voice here for instance, it shows them that they are not alone, that their
04:02fight is not something that they are solely David versus Goliath but they have nine-tenths of the
04:07world behind them and that it only requires awakening that nine-tenths to realize what
04:11power that they have. The other prong I think to this is that we need to learn from each other
04:17and learn from the experiences of various movements around the world so we can integrate that into our
04:23own. Chavistas should learn from those in Gaza who are waging resistance against the Israeli occupation
04:29and those in the United States should learn not just get information about you know what their
04:34occupied government is doing in these countries but also should learn the tactics and the theories
04:40and the struggle from these countries in order to integrate that into their own experience
04:44because in the U.S. we have of course also disgruntlement against the state but it's not
04:48channeled in a way that's historically what we would say is maybe progressive. It's sometimes
04:52channeled in ways that is antithetical to their own interests so learning from the experiences of
04:58other people around the world and integrating that into our own that is a core part of the
05:02anti-imperialist struggle. And you were talking from a United States perspective and I would like
05:07to add and also just ask you in this context what does it mean to participate in the anti-imperialist
05:16struggle from the United States? You were talking about the learning process from other movements
05:23all over the country but how's the struggle like in the United States? You've just come from an
05:30election process, you're facing a new mandate of Donald Trump in the coming years. How do you see
05:36the movement? Do you see hope that the anti-imperialist struggle will grow? We've seen great
05:42mobilizations in favor of Palestine for example. What does it mean to carry that flag in that
05:48territory? Well I think anti-imperialism in the American context in our view is an inherently
05:57patriotic position because the United States government, what it calls itself a democracy,
06:02does not reflect a popular will. If you want evidence look at the fact that both Donald Trump
06:07and Kamala Harris were the two nominees. Wildly unpopular candidates, Kamala Harris who wasn't even
06:12properly vetted as part of the democratic process. So I think that we need to essentially
06:19view this as one struggle. The imperialist system is one system.
06:26NATO, imperialism, the genocide in Gaza, this is one conflict and the American people are a part
06:32of that conflict. Their struggle against their own government, their own discontent is tied up
06:38with the oppression in Gaza, with the war in the Ukraine and I think that integrating this into
06:45our own struggle from a patriotic popular position against the states. To understand this
06:50is one movement that the youth of the world is united against this system that is also alien to
06:54us. That's very important. Of course it's the task of the left to articulate this and the American
07:01left has trouble doing this. There are factions of the American left that often appear very
07:06anti-imperialist but in fact they spout the same ideology of the democratic party and the ruling
07:11establishment. So although this election wasn't necessarily a happy one, at the very least because
07:17the democratic party has been destroyed, decimated because of this, discredited, it at least opens
07:23the space for something new to emerge. It allows for a new left that is independent of the democratic
07:28and republican parties, that is rooted in the working class of our country and which can be
07:33tie the national struggle in the United States with the anti-imperial struggle around the world.
07:39So I think that there are lots of lessons to learn but we have a very long road ahead.
07:44We will continue to analyze and hope that effectively something new emerges. Definitely
07:51the struggle in the global south has a lot to think about. It's solidarity and the possibilities
07:56of solidarities with the working class in the United States and so we truly appreciate your
08:02work and whatever you're doing there. So thank you Grayson for joining us in Teluser English
08:07and we go now back to studios before saying that the congress is ending its first day but
08:15we'll continue on Saturday and as you were saying and as you were seeing, this side of discussions
08:22are the ones that are being carried out at this youth anti-fascist congress here in Venezuela.
08:28The idea that the different struggles around the world in their fight against fascism can
08:34come together to debate these ideas and also analyze possible strategies for the years to
08:40come. That's the idea and the goal for this event that the youth, the young generations
08:45from every country can build and think and draw up a map for the coming years around the world.
08:53So now we go back to you. Thank you Hélène for bringing us all the details
08:57regarding the first days of the anti-fascism days of student world.