About the Book

As cities sprawl across Latin America, absorbing more and more of its people, crime and violence have become inescapable. From the paramilitary invasion of Medellin Colombia, the booming wealth of crack dealers in Managua, and police corruption in Mexico City, to the glimmers of hope in Lima, this book provides a dynamic analysis of urban insecurity. Working with new empirical evidence, interviews with local people and historical contextualization, the authors shed light on the fault-lines which have appeared in Latin American society. They argue that the situation can only be improved by cooperation between communities and police to build new networks of trust.

Contents

Introduction: The Duality of Latin American Cityscapes - Kees Koonings and Dirk Kruijt
1. Fractured Cities, Second-Class Citizenship, and Urban Violence - Kees Koonings and Dirk Kruijt
2. Rio de Janeiro - Elizabeth Leeds
3. Mexico City - Wil Pansters and Hector Castillo Berthier
4. Medell¡n - Ralph Rozema
5. Managua - Dennis Rodgers
6. Caracas - Roberto Briceño-León
7. Lima Metropolitana - Carlos Ivan Degregori and Dirk Kruijt
8. Living in Fear: How the Urban Poor Perceive Violence, Fear and Insecurity - Cathy McIlwaine and Caroline O. N. Moser
Epilogue: Latin America’s Urban Duality Revisited - Dirk Kruijt and Kees Koonings

About the Authors

Kees Koonings is Associate Professor of Development Studies in the Faculty of Social Sciences, Utrecht University.

Dirk Kruijt is Professor of Development Studies in the Faculty of Social Sciences, Utrecht University.

They are the co-editors of three previously published Zed Books titles:

Societies of Fear: The Legacy of Civil War, Violence and Terror in Latin America (1999)

Political Armies: The Military and Nation Building in the Age of Democracy (2002)

Armed Actors: Organised Violence and State Failure in Latin America (2004)

Academic Adoption Information

This book is used for teaching at the following institutions:

Staffordshire University

University of Oxford, Queen Elizabeth House

University College London