Violence and Resilience in Latin American Cities

Why are Latin American cities amongst the most violent in the world? Over the past decades Latin America has not only become the most urbanized of the regions of the so-called 'global South', it has also been the scene of the urbanization of poverty and exclusion. Overall regional homicides rates are the highest in the world, a fact closely related to the spread and use of small firearms by male youths who are frequently involved in local and translocal forms of organized crime. In response, governments and law enforcements agencies have been facing increasing pressure to address violence through repressive strategies, which in turn has led to a number of consequences: law enforcement is often based on excessive violence and the victimization of entire marginal populations. Thus, the dynamics of violence have generated a widespread perception of insecurity and fear. Featuring much original fieldwork across a broad array of case studies, this cutting edge volume focuses on questions not only of crime, insecurity and violence but also of Latin American cities' ability to respond to these problems in creative and productive ways.