Hands Off Venezuela gets to Leeds University

On September the 19th two supporters of Hands off Venezuela set up a stall outside the Leeds University Freshers Fair, neither having been in Leeds for more than 24 hours. Having little idea of what to expect, we were pleasantly surprised by the response.
Initially we faced the usual barrier of NUS bureaucracy, forcing us to move from the grass outside the union to outside the gate. Despite this we received a very positive response from the students. There seemed to be a widespread support for the ideals of solidarity forwarded by the HOV campaign and empathy for the Bolivarian Revolution. Literature was also sold at a good rate; the number of ABC’s of the Venezuelan Revolution unsold quickly diminishing. The two copies of Che Guevara’s Motorcycle Diaries were also eagerly bought, a reflection of the double-edged popularisation of Che Guevara’s adventures, as works of greater theoretical importance went unsold. We were also able to get quite a few contact details and had a number of good discussions with interested students.
Possibly the most positive development was the eager support offered by a particular officer of the NUS. Hopefully we will be able to capitalise on the two day’s events. We can best hope to consolidate our activity by forming a society and by having a video screening later this year.