Daniel Fermín Álvarez
Sociologist. Activist. Venezuelanist.
I’m a sociologist and activist, born in Caracas and based in New York, where I’m currently pursuing a PhD in Politics and Historical Studies at The New School for Social Research. My research, The Paradox of Participation and Pluralism, explores how Venezuela’s Bolivarian Revolution managed to expand democratic participation while suppressing political pluralism — and how that contradiction contributed to the erosion of democracy.
I’ve been a Fellow at the Janey Program for Latin American Studies and a Social Change Fellow at NSSR, and this fall I’ll be teaching the course Histories of Revolution and Democracy in Latin America at Eugene Lang College at The New School. Previously, I taught at the School of Social Sciences at UCAB from 2014 to 2017.
I write political opinion and analysis primarily for a Venezuelan audience. My work has appeared in Tal Cual, El Universal, NACLA, The Washington Post, BBC Mundo, among others. I’ve also been interviewed by outlets such as Globovisión, Televén, Al Jazeera English, and CGTN China.
I currently serve as Director of Public Policy for Soluciones para Venezuela, a center-left political party and grassroots movement that believes in democracy, defends the vote, organizes from the bottom up, and is committed to national reconciliation. I’m committed to a vision for Venezuela from the democratic Left, that goes beyond both chavismo and the traditional opposition — a democracy grounded in social justice, built from below.
I love coffee, pizza, salsa music, and baseball. Tiburones de La Guaira pa’ encima! But above all, I believe in politics as a collective act — to make life livable and dignified, with schools that teach, hospitals that care, jobs that provide, and rights that are respected. It’s up to us to rebuild the commons and make Venezuela a just, inclusive, and joyful country, where well-being is the norm and dignity is never the exception.
You can find me on socials here:
danielfermin.com 