About the book
In Mexico and across other parts of Latin America local Indigenous peoples have built community policing groups as a means of protection where the state has limited control over, and even complicity in, crime and violence. Luis Hernández Navarro, a leading Mexican journalist, offers a riveting investigation of these armed self-defense groups that sprang up around the time of the 1994 Zapatista uprising in Chiapas. Available in English for the first time, the book spotlights the intense precarity of everyday life in parts of Mexico. Hernández Navarro shows how the self-defense response, which now includes wealthier rancher and farmer groups, is being transformed by Mexico’s expanding role in the multibillion dollar global drug trade, by foreign corporations’ extraction of raw minerals in traditionally Indigenous lands, and by the resulting social changes in local communities.
But as Hernández Navarro acknowledges, self-defense is highly controversial. Community policing may provide citizens with increased agency, but for government officials it can be a dangerous threat to the status quo. Leftists and liberals are wary of how the groups may be linked to paramilitary forces and vulnerable to manipulation by drug traffickers and the government alike. This book answers the urgent call to understand the dangerous complexities of government failures and popular solutions.
Editions of Self-Defense in Mexico
- Hardcover
- ISBN 9781469654522
- Paperback
- ISBN 9781469654539
- EBook
- ISBN 9781469654553
- EBook
- ISBN 9798890856616
- EBook
- ISBN 9781469654546
- PDF
- ISBN 9798890856609
Read an Excerpt
In Mexico and across other parts of Latin America local Indigenous peoples have built community policing groups as a means of protection where the state has limited control over, and even complicity in, crime and violence. Luis Hernández Navarro, a leading Mexican journalist, offers a riveting investigation of these armed self-defense groups that sprang up around the time of the 1994 Zapatista uprising in Chiapas. Available in English for the first time, the book spotlights the intense precarity of everyday life in parts of Mexico. Hernández Navarro shows how the self-defense response, which now includes wealthier rancher and farmer groups, is being transformed by Mexico’s expanding role in the multibillion dollar global drug trade, by foreign corporations’ extraction of raw minerals in traditionally Indigenous lands, and by the resulting social changes in local communities.
But as Hernández Navarro acknowledges, self-defense is highly controversial. Community policing may provide citizens with increased agency, but for government officials it can be a dangerous threat to the status quo. Leftists and liberals are wary of how the groups may be linked to paramilitary forces and vulnerable to manipulation by drug traffickers and the government alike. This book answers the urgent call to understand the dangerous complexities of government failures and popular solutions.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Self-Defense in Mexico about?
In Mexico and across other parts of Latin America local Indigenous peoples have built community policing groups as a means of protection where the state has limited control over, and even complicity in, crime and violence. Luis Hernández Navarro, a leading Mexican journalist, offers a riveting investigation of these armed self-defense groups that sprang up around the time of the 1994 Zapatista uprising in Chiapas. Available in English for the first time, the book spotlights the intense precarity of everyday life in parts of Mexico. Hernández Navarro shows how the self-defense response, which now includes wealthier rancher and farmer groups, is being transformed by Mexico’s expanding role in the multibillion dollar global drug trade, by foreign corporations’ extraction of raw minerals in traditionally Indigenous lands, and by the resulting social changes in local communities.
But as Hernández Navarro acknowledges, self-defense is highly controversial. Community policing may provide citizens with increased agency, but for government officials it can be a dangerous threat to the status quo. Leftists and liberals are wary of how the groups may be linked to paramilitary forces and vulnerable to manipulation by drug traffickers and the government alike. This book answers the urgent call to understand the dangerous complexities of government failures and popular solutions.
What core themes, tropes, or subjects are explored in Self-Defense in Mexico?
Society and Social Sciences > Society and culture: general > Social groups, communities and identities > Ethnic studies / Ethnicity
Where can I read a sample of Self-Defense in Mexico?
You can read an official preview of the few pages here https://www.book2look.com/book/9781469654522
How long is Self-Defense in Mexico and how many pages does it have?
Self-Defense in Mexico has 278 page(s)
Is Self-Defense in Mexico part of a series, and can it be read as a standalone?
Yes it is a part of series Latin America in Translation/en Traducción/em Tradução
Who is/are the Author/s of the book Self-Defense in Mexico?
Luis Hernández Navarro
What are the ISBN numbers for the physical and digital editions?
Self-Defense in Mexico is available as hardcover(ISBN 9781469654522) and paperback(ISBN 9781469654539) and ebook(ISBN 9781469654553) and ebook(ISBN 9798890856616) and ebook(ISBN 9781469654546) and pdf(ISBN 9798890856609)
Where can I buy Self-Defense in Mexico online or support local independent bookshops?
You can buy Self-Defense in Mexico from below
Where can I buy Self-Defense in Mexico?