School’s Out in Most of Latin America. Gangs Are Thrilled.
By
John Otis
With 97% of Latin American kids out of class, some criminal groups see a bonanza in recruitment.
This article is adapted from AQ’s special report on transnational organized crime TUMACO, Colombia— Lidia Cruz, a community leader in southern Colombia, spends her days trying to prevent children and young adults from being forced to join drug trafficking groups When all else fails, she covertly helps evacuate potential recruits to safer areas of the country One of the most recent evacuees: her own son He had been attending a technical college in the Pacific coast city of Tumaco But classes were cancelled in March as the COVID-19 pandemic erupted, so he and other...
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