Why Simón Bolívar Isn’t the Only Revolutionary Icon Venezuelans Should Look Up To

Francisco de Miranda, a Quixotic Fighter for Liberty, Also Belongs in Our National Pantheon

In Philadelphia, there is only one statue dedicated to someone from Latin America. If you look among the monuments along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, you’ll eventually come across the statue of Venezuelan revolutionary Francisco de Miranda.

The plaque tells a quick story: Miranda was born in Caracas in 1750, fought with the Spanish troops during the American Revolution, served as a general during the French Revolution, briefly led an independent Venezuela, and died while jailed in a Spanish fortress in 1816.

I can’t blame you if you haven’t heard of Miranda …