Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios

Simon Bolivar (Wikipedia)

I have chosen Simon Bolivar as my hero. There are many reasons that I have chosen him among all the other possible people, the main reason being he stood up for what he thought was right and fought for his people. Bolivar, also known as the “George Washington of South America” was a very prestigious man and had many accomplishments. He led many attacks on foreign and unwanted rulers and liberated countries such as Peru from Spanish rule that was not wanted. Bolivar has been greatly recognized for his accomplishments all over the world. In Washington D.C. there is a statue commemorating His life and works, every town and city in Venezuela and Colombia has a plaza named after him, and there are countless statues of him worldwide.

Bolivar was born July 24, 1793 in Caracas, which is present day Venezuela and died December 17, 1830. Throughout his life Bolivar traveled from Europe to Central/South America quite often. After completing his schooling in Europe he returned to Venezuela. While he was in the Americas Bolivar was constantly fighting to “liberate” the people. This involved many battle and continuous political involvement.

Simon Bolivar in Central Park

Bolivar is important to me because seeing what one man has started and done gives me confidence to make the decisions that I believe are right. He is also important to me because I am very interested in the Spanish culture and he is one of the most famously known people in Latin American countries.

Bolivar took many actions during his lifetime that has greatly affected the Latin American countries. He is not referred as the “George Washington of South America” and “The Liberator” for nothing. Not to mention he even has a country named after him, Bolivia. Without Bolivar the Latin American countries would be much different. He was constantly trying to liberate the countries of Spanish and always fighting for independence.

Due to the struggles endured and perseverance of Bolivar, Latin American countries have been able to retain a sense of culture and independence from the rest of the world. Latin America has its own dances, foods, art styles, and I feel that Bolivar had a great influence in letting allowing those cultural aspects to shine through.