Beyond Autonomy and Coercion. Recruitment Processes and Women’s Motivations for Joining Organized Crime in Mexico

Angelica Maria Ospina-Escobar

Abstract


Analyzing 20 in-depth interviews with women who are former or active members of criminal groups, we describe some women’s motivations for joining and remaining in criminal groups and their recruitment process. Main motivations for joining criminal groups are a sense of belonging and recognition, access to financial resources and protection from violence or desire for revenge. Belonging to a criminal group provided the participants with agency and autonomy that they had not previously experienced. We conclude that joining criminal groups can be a way for women to escape gender-based violence and patriarchal norms. However, as structural machismo shapes their experiences within criminal groups, autonomy is an illusion, limited to the backing of male leaders who ultimately exert control over women’s lives.


Keywords


women; organized crime; gender; autonomy; Mexico

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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17951/al.2024.16.65-88
Date of publication: 2024-10-01 14:13:38
Date of submission: 2024-07-01 21:51:08


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