We Had to Pay to Live

Bibliographic Data

ID3079366
AuthorsWil G Pansters (0000-0003-1211-7217, Utrecht University, corresponding author)
Year2015
Volume1
Issue1
Pages144-164
Publication date2015-06-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueConflict and Society (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2164-4543 • E-ISSN: 2164-4551
PublisherBerghahn Books (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.3167/arcs.2015.010112
OpenAlexW2217261182
LanguageEN
Citations received10
References cited13

This article examines the emergence of self-defense forces (autodefensas) in Michoacán (Mexico) in the context of relationships between drug trafficking and the state, concentrating on the recent history of fragmentation, disorder, and violence. It traces how these processes generated comprehensive criminal sovereignty projects, which then triggered the emergence of armed defense forces in both indigenous and mestizo communities. Recent developments in Michoacán are described in light of anthropological theorizing about the relations between sovereignty, state-making, and (dis)ordering. The analysis elucidates the triangular dynamics of sovereignty-making among organized crime, the state, and armed citizens. Special attention is given to state interventions to dismantle de facto self-defense sovereignties because these have created an unstable and violent situation. It is argued that sovereignty-making is territorial and historical, and that it is embedded in political, economic, and cultural identities

Archaeology · Criminology · Drug trafficking · Geography · Indigenous · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Sovereignty · State formation · Anthropological Studies and Insights · Crime, Illicit Activities, and Governance · Law · Political Conflict and Governance