From the Director: Welcome to the Dissident Project
A welcome message from Daniel Di Martino, director of the Dissident Project
Thank you for your interest in The Dissident Project — the first ever free-to-high-school speakers bureau in America composed exclusively of young immigrants from socialist countries whose personal messages about the horrors of socialism are tailored for high school students.
Let me begin by telling you about the origins of this project, and then I’ll explain what you can do to help educate young Americans about the evils of socialism.
A couple of years after coming to America from Venezuela, I began writing articles and appearing on TV to talk about what was happening in my home country — namely, how it had been destroyed by socialism. I saw how some American politicians downplayed or denied socialism as the source of Venezuela’s problems and instead blamed America. I had to do something about it. One thing led to another, and I began traveling the country in my free time, sharing my story to warn Americans about the threat posed by socialist ideas and politicians to our way of life.
Everywhere I’ve gone, parents have approached me expressing deep concern over the lies their children are learning in school — about how America is an evil country and how socialism is the answer to our problems, not the brutal system I grew up in. At a recent speaking engagement I attended, a Vietnamese-American grandmother, who had fled communism in her native land, told me how much she loved this country, but also how worried she was that schools were turning her grandchildren into communists.
It’s sad to say, but these parents' concerns come as no surprise to me. Just a few months after I came to America to study in 2016, a freshman girl who sat next to me on the first day of American politics class told me that she thought “America sucks” and subsequently asked why I had come here given how bad America was.
Something has to change. But most of the events and conferences people like myself speak at are filled with friendly crowds. Crowds on campus are usually composed either of students who already agree or hecklers there to boo the speaker. Meanwhile, left-wing organizations seldom invite survivors of socialism to tell their stories.
Then, a few months ago, I spoke at Algonquin Regional, a public high school in Massachusetts, about how socialism ruined Venezuela and why that matters for America. At the end of my 30 minute talk, I received over a dozen questions from a crowd of over 50 students that seemed hungry to learn about something they’re not taught in school. Many of the students stayed afterwards to talk to me too. Some teachers who attended disagreed with me and asked questions, but were always respectful. I found that the audience was neither friendly nor hostile to my message; it was politically diverse and representative of the local community. Unlike colleges or major events, high school speaking engagements are attended usually by all the students of the teachers in related subjects. This means that the most liberal and the most conservative alike attend. Teenagers are also less likely to have formed all of their political beliefs and are more open to learning and changing their minds. All of this makes high schools the perfect environment for getting teaching out about the dangers of socialism.
This is something state legislatures have already caught on to: This year, Florida passed laws requiring that high schools teach about the evils of socialist and communist regimes, specifically including first-hand testimony from people who lived in them like me and others. With over 2,000 high schools in Florida, the third most in the nation, a lot of teachers will be looking for speakers for their classes very soon.
Where will they turn to meet these state mandated requirements? This was clearly an opportunity for those of us who love freedom to invest and reap rewards. Using my network of immigrant friends from Venezuela and other countries and with guidance from Young Voices, the Dissident Project was born. Together with the help of generous donors, we’re now training our first class of dissident speakers. These are Grace Jo from North Korea, Franklin Camargo from Venezuela, Felix Llerena from Cuba, Sunny Cheung from Hong Kong, Jorge Galicia from Venezuela, Frances Hui from Hong Kong, and Maria Bello from Venezuela. I invite you to learn more about their inspiring stories standing up to the regimes that rule our countries and what they have done in America so far at their young age.
Here’s how you can help:
If you’re a teacher at a high school, reach out to invite us to speak to your students.
If you’re a student, tell a teacher so they may invite us.
If you want to help us reach more Americans, we humbly ask that you donate what you can.
If you’re also an immigrant from a socialist country, especially from one not represented, reach out to us and apply to become a Dissident speaker.
As immigrants, it’s our responsibility to protect the freedoms America has granted us while we’ve lived here. I hope you join us in this project.
Daniel Di Martino (@DanielDiMartino) is the founder of the Dissident Project. He was born and raised in Venezuela, where he experienced the terrible consequences of socialism. He is currently working to obtain his PhD in Economics at Columbia University in New York City,
