Americas Quarterly’s New Issue Covers How COVID-19 is Changing Organized Crime
Americas Quarterly’s New Issue Covers How COVID-19 is Changing Organized Crime
With Latin American governments distracted by the pandemic, transnational crime groups have continued to thrive.
January 26, 2021—“Gangs like the Brazil-based First Command of the Capital (PCC, by its Portuguese initials) and Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel are taking advantage of distracted governments and desperate populations to tighten their grip over swathes of the economy, political structures and, often, territory as well,” write Americas Quarterly’s (AQ) editors in the magazine's new issue, dedicated to how organized crime in the region has continued to thrive during the pandemic and how to manage the consequences.
John Otis describes how gangs are recruiting minors that are not attending school due to the pandemic. Brian Fonseca and José Miguel Cruz explain how organized crime is changing and what to do about it. The AQ staff provide an X-ray of Latin America’s seven most visible organizations and the territories they control. Cecilia Tornaghi interviews a pioneering Brazilian police official following the money to defund organized crime. Brendan O’Boyle writes about what we can expect from the new U.S. President Joe Biden when it comes to transnational crime. Lucía Dammert tells the story of a brazen Peruvian former governor who is a living tale of the toxic combination of crime and politics.
Other articles in this issue include:
- A Threat That Cannot Be Addressed Alone, by Rear Admiral Andrew J. Tiongson
- An Elections 2021 special section, by Emilie Sweigart and Brenda O’Boyle
- Photo essay: A Year of Change on the Paraná River, by Sebastián López Brach
- Farewell to an Unassuming Star of Latin America’s Left, by Nicolás Saldías
The issue starts getting rolled out online on January 26, 2021 with all content available on February 4, 2021 at americasquarterly.org. Read the full issue in PDF.
Press inquiries:
To learn more, to request interviews with the authors, or to request a republication permission, please contact AS/COA Media Relations: mediarelations@as-coa.org.
