Abstract

Why are Latin American cities amongst the most violent in the world? Over the past decades Latin America has not only become the most urbanised of the regions of the so-called global South, it has also been the scene of the urbanisation of poverty and exclusion. Overall regional homicides rates are the highest in the world, a fact closely related to the spread and use of firearms by male youths, who are frequently involved in local and translocal forms of organised crime. In response, governments and law enforcements agencies have been facing mounting 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 victimisation 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.

'The diversity of case studies and the in-depth research of each of the authors reveal a multi-faceted image of Latin American cities, violence and insecurity, which calls for acknowledging the specific historical and local contexts.'

Environment and Urbanization

'Highly recommended - this crucially important volume focuses on the hope that is present in some of the world's most violent urban spaces.'
Choice

‘Koonings, Krujit and their colleagues have established a new benchmark in the qualitative analysis of urban crime trends and their complex relationships to economic informality, corrupt policing, and neighborhood “resilience”.’
Mike Davis, author of Planet of Slums and Evil Paradises

‘Combining deep on-the-ground knowledge, clear writing, and balanced political and social analysis, this indispensable book throws new light on one of the most puzzling, and seemingly intractable issues of twenty first century Latin America.’
Javier Auyero, author of In Harm’s Way: The Dynamics of Urban Violence

‘An important collection that calls attention not only to the fracture and fragility of Latin American cities, but to their resilience in responding to endemic violence and inequality. A valuable contribution sure to be embraced by scholars and students.’
Daniel Goldstein, author of Outlawed: Between Security and Rights in a Bolivian City

‘This volume makes a critical contribution to Latin American and Caribbean studies by providing a comprehensive discussion of the violence facing cities in the region and the ways that some cities have begun to develop successful responses.’
Enrique Desmond Arias, author of Drugs and Democracy in Rio de Janeiro

‘Koonings and Kruijt bring together expertise on urban violence in the cities of Central America, South America and the Caribbean to analyze both the contours of the violence and the forms of resilience which parallel it.’
Garth Myers, Trinity College Hartford

‘Provides an excellent overview of the Janus-faced reality of contemporary Latin American cities as sites of conflict and violence on the one hand, but also resilience and innovation on the other. Offering an exceptionally coherent set of detailed case studies based on original research, it will undoubtedly become a major reference point in the urban field for years to come.’
Dennis Rodgers, University of Glasgow

Kees Koonings is associate professor of development studies in the Faculty of Social Sciences at Utrecht University. He is also professor of Brazilian studies in the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Amsterdam and attached to CEDLA (the Centre for Latin American Research and Documentation).

Dirk Kruijt is professor emeritus of development studies in the Faculty of Social Sciences at Utrecht University. He has published on poverty and informality, military governments, guerrilla movements in Central America, and war and peace in Latin America.