Antisemitism in Venezuela

Antisemitism in Venezuela has happened occasionally in Venezuela throughout the history of the Jews in Venezuela. However, under the presidencies of both Hugo Chávez and Nicolás Maduro, allegations of antisemitism grew following actions and statements by the Venezuelan government, while also occurring in public incidents. The Jewish population also declined rapidly under the Bolivarian government according to the Algemeiner Journal, with an estimated population of 22,000 in 1999, falling to under 7,000 in 2015.

In 1827, a group of Jews moved from Curaçao and settled in Coro, Venezuela. In 1855, rioting in the area forced the entire Jewish population, 168 individuals, back to Curaçao. Assimilation of Jews in Venezuela was difficult, though small communities could be found in Puerto Cabello, Villa de Cura, Carupano, Rio Chico, Maracaibo, and Barquisimeto.

Immigration restrictions were placed on Jews in the early 20th century and were abolished in the late 1950s. By 1950 there were around 6,000 Jewish people in Venezuela and the biggest waves of immigration occurred after World War II and the 1967 Six-Day War, The Jewish population in Venezuela was largely centered in Caracas, with smaller concentrations in Maracaibo. Most of Venezuela's Jews are either first or second generation.

Venezuela was hospitable to Jewish life, and Jews "developed deep ties to the country and a strong sense of patriotism".

According to the Latin American Jewish Congress, Venezuela's Jewish community had an estimated 22,000 people when Chávez took office in 1999. In the first few years of the 21st century, the number of Venezuelan Jews emigrating to Israel was shown to have steadily grown. The Algemeiner Journal stated that the Jewish emigration from Venezuela occurred due to "the country’s economic crisis ... as well as the anti-Semitic rhetoric that has marked the left-wing regime’s support for Iran, Syria, and Palestinian Islamist organizations like Hamas" and that "first Chavez and now Maduro have found political uses for anti-Jewish rhetoric".

...
Wikipedia