Criminal Governance in Latin America

Link to World Issues recorded session

World Issues Forum Presentation: “Criminal Governance in Latin America” 

Presenters: Professor Andreas Feldmann, The University of Illinois at Chicago

Latin America (LA) is experiencing an acute security crisis with rising levels of violence by a plethora of actors involved in different criminal activities disputing power among themselves and with the state. With growing power and resources, they have begun to challenge states' monopoly of coercion transforming themselves into de facto authorities in large swathes of their respective countries. An estimated 10-15% of the LA population live under these conditions. This dynamic is conceptualized as criminal governance: the regulation of social order, informal or illegal economies through the enforcement of formal and informal institutions that replace, complement, or compete with the state, or through the distribution of public goods such as social services, justice, and security.