Zero Tolerance in Latin America: Punitive Paradox in Urban Policy Mobilities

In Latin America, high levels of crime have prompted many politicians to embrace zero tolerance policing in order to quell public fears. While the overall impacts on urban crime are debatable, zero tolerance in the region has morphed into a powerful policy narrative that symbolizes strong leaders who crack down crime and disorder. Its impacts have been far-reaching; to date, it has been implemented in various guises in Mexico, Brazil, Ecuador, Venezuela, Chile, Argentina, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic. Yet, the policy transfer of zero tolerance to Latin America has mutated into a much more punitive approach. In this paper, I develop a critical analysis of the punitive inequalities of zero tolerance policing in Latin American cities, and the consequences for marginalized and racialized youth. I also explore the emergence of a new, unexpected consequence of zero tolerance: the South-North migration of undocumented people.

Key words:

• zero tolerance
• Latin America
• policing
• transnational migration
• youth

Acknowledgements

The author thanks Tom Slater, Richard Shearmur, Elvin Wyly, Giorgio Curti and three anonymous reviewers for their valuable inputs. Earlier versions of this paper were presented at Michigan State University, as well as at the Urban Marginality and the State conference in Paris, France. Comments and questions at these events helped strengthen this paper.