March 14 - In mid-February, hundreds of students from Venezuela’s most prestigious university did the once unthinkable: their protest left the campus of the Central University of Venezuela in Caracas and spilled out into a nearby street.

Before the U.S. military operation that captured Nicolas Maduro on January 3, student activism was a risky proposition in Venezuela. Remaining on campus had historically offered some protection; student protesters who took to the streets risked being beaten, detained, or worse. Bodies like the United Nations have denounced torture against detainees in Venezuela, including electric shocks, asphyxiation and sleep deprivation.