Multi-Facet and Complex Role of Culture in Organized Crime in Mexico

Introduction

The war on illicit drugs in Mexico remains a puzzle that the judicial system has not managed to resolve. The country has witnessed the growth of powerful drug cartels that continue to run their enterprises with relative impunity. Worse still, young children are often involved in various supply chain stages, from finding new customers to transporting drugs due to their naivety and cheap labor. Definitively, drug lords have some of the most complex criminal enterprises that work to profit from illicit activities that are often in great public demand. Some factors that encourage drug trafficking in the region include Mexico’s far-reaching smuggling history, culture, and proximity to the world’s largest economy, the United States.

Common Themes in Media and Government Reports

One of the primary themes in the media is that the Mexican drug cartels are one of the largest in the world. For instance, one news report stated that the Sinaloa drug cartel group has strongholds in 16 of the 32 Mexican states and operations in about 50 countries (Lambert, 2023). The leader of the group is Zambada Garcia, who is well-known by the authorities and members of the public. However, he has never been in jail despite the US State Department giving out US$15 million for any person who will provide information leading to his arrest (Lambert, 2023). The other common theme is that of violence perpetrated by the drug lords to evade arrest or competing groups fighting against each other. For example, the Guardian News Paper recently reported that 29 people were killed when the Culiacan drug cartels opened fire to prevent the transportation of El Chapo’s son after his arrest (Phillips & Nuño, 2023). Such exchanges often lead to a significant number of causalities, some of which can be unsuspecting civilians.

Moreover, the theme of juvenile involvement in drug trafficking errands is common. The spread of drug crimes and violence makes children normalize their experiences due to continuous exposure over a long period (Chomczyński & Guy, 2021). The occasional trauma involving gun exchange between criminal groups and the police create trauma in young children. Notably, minors may not conceptualize the issue and think that the police are bad, especially if one of the people in the neighborhood is injured or dies in such battles.

Role of Culture in Mexican Drug Mafias

Mexico is ideally a strong patriarchal society where men are mostly in leadership positions of their homes, organizations, and the society. The increase in the number of drug traffickers in the region has led to establishment support spaces for drug dealers, exemplified in the homes of their lords (Aschner & Montero, 2020). The sumptuous homes create a safe haven for the new recruits and those still gaining their bearing in the illicit-drug business. The members call each other brothers and may even make an oath of allegiance to remain loyal to the group and keep the secret of the family. The tradition makes the drug dealers to establish strong networks.

Admiration of Drug Lords

The drug lords are extremely rich people and are admired within their internal circles for their ability to evade the police. For instance, the New York Post described the spouses of the drug lords as queens and went ahead to describe their extravagant dress code (Vincent, 2021). The drug dealers are intelligent in their ways of operation and use many tricks to evade authority. For example, most of drug peddlers have legal businesses but operate their illicit enterprise through the back door (Chomczyński et al., 2019). Moreover, these queens and their drug lords continue to inspire songs and movies where they are presented as powerful and admirable (Vincent, 2021). Some people are impressed by the ruthlessness of the drug lords and their ability to attack and kill all their enemies. Their families are perceived as protected and beyond the authorities.

Role of Culture in the Growth and Status of Cartels

The culture significantly influences the development and sustenance of the illicit-drug business. The top characteristics that exemplify the mafia groups in Mexico include longevity, having large size, complex structure, elaborate cultural operations, political dominion, and multi-functionality (Reuter & Paoli, 2020). Noteworthy, the Mexicans are highly social and love staying as families or in a group with different authority structures which is emulated in the organization of the criminal groups.

Mexico borrowed the aspect of Romans, clubbing, and music from the Mexican culture and embraced it as a way of life. The country has Narcocoridos, drug ballads, which are a form of gangster band that upholds the drug lords (Richmond, 2014). They are praised for rising beyond poverty, marginalization, and poverty to become rich and powerful through trading drugs. The political involvement of the cartels makes it difficult to end illicit-drug business because it is difficult to carry out an arrest despite knowing where the main leaders of the enterprise are (Dilanian, 2023). Furthermore, the fact that the family units are closely knit means that it is very difficult for members to unveil drug dealers because they are relatives. The respect given to people of high status and older age plays a role in making the young police capture the well-established offenders.

Opinion on Media Depiction of Mexican Drug-Lords

In my opinion, the media depiction of illicit drugs in Mexico is accurate, but sometimes with some exaggeration. Mexico remains one of the countries with highly organized groups for illegal narcotics and rightly depicted as such in the media. The media presents Mexico as a region of tradition, food, colors, violence, illegal immigration, poverty, and drug trafficking (De la Vega, 2021). Overall, it is a place of jovial people who are suppressed by life hurdles such as poverty and unfair treatment, especially by the US border police. The stereotypes, such as depicting the Mexicans, are portrayed as evil, and sometimes they live up to the stereotypical expectation. In addition, the depiction of drug lords as living their best lives, rich, and powerful makes them admirable to other people.

Conclusion

In conclusion, illicit drug enterprises are well established in Mexico and run by cartel groups with a large scale of operation. Their highly organized and complex activities make it easy for them to evade the legal authorities. The Mexican culture, where people are social and closely knit in families, provides a perfect hide-out for drug dealers because the relatives cannot disclose their secrets. Moreover, people admire that drug dealers escape poverty through enterprises and gain a big status in society. The media continues to play a role in presenting some factual information on the status of the illicit drug business in Mexico. However, some of the content is highly exaggerated and only serves to encourage such crimes.

References

Aschner, J. P., & Montero, J. C. (2020). Architectures, spaces, and territories of illicit drug trafficking in Colombia and Mexico. Crime, Media, Culture: An International Journal, 17(3), 327-351. Web.

Chomczyński, P. A., & Guy, R. (2021). ‘Our biographies are the same’: Juvenile work in Mexican drug trafficking organizations from the perspective of a collective trajectory. The British Journal of Criminology, 61(4), 946-964. Web.

Chomczyński, P. A., Guy, R., & Cortina-Cortés, R. (2019). Front business–back business: The social anatomy of small-time drug dealing in a Mexico City neighborhood. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, 48(6), 750-772. Web.

De la Vega, L. P. (2021). Take them down: The construction and contestation of mexicans and drug cartels in Videogames. Hispania, 104(4), 653-669. Web.

Dilanian, K. (2023). Drug war Allies U.S. and Mexico aren’t getting along. What happened? NBC News. Web.

Lambert, E. (2023). The men behind Mexico’s most powerful drug cartels. News Nation. Web.

Phillips, T., & Nuño, A. (2023). Twenty-four hours of terror as cartel violence engulfs Mexican city. The Guardian. Web.

Reuter, P., & Paoli, L. (2020). How similar are modern criminal syndicates to traditional Mafias? Crime and Justice, 49, 223-287. Web.

Richmond, K. L. (2014). Corridos, drugs, and violence: An analysis of Mexican drug ballads. West Virginia University.

Vincent, I. (2021). Meet the queens at the top of Mexico’s most ruthless drug cartels. New York Post. Web.