After having read Murder City by Charles Bowden, I was intrigued about the situation in Juarez today. The book relates the tragedies and killings that occurred in 2008. Recently I stumbled on a article on the Washington Times website. It seems that the rate of murders in Juarez is decreasing which is encouraging to hear as the people in that region have suffered beyond our imagination. The article attributes the decrease in crime rates to various factors.
1. There was a shift in power between two prominent drug cartels. The Sinaloa Cartel became more powerful when the Juarez Cartel head was arrested and brought to the States.
2. The creation of jobs by the Mexican government. Many Mexicans had lost their jobs when the US economy went south. This caused workers to find the only employment they could, hit-men.
3. Juarez has a new chief of police who appears to be cleaning out the corrupt cops.
4. Citizens of Juarez are working together to bring their city back.
If you are interested in reading more on the current state of Juarez, Mexico, follow this link: Life stirs anew in murder capital Juarez.
I think the book you chose is really hard to read, a eye-opening reading... it is very informative to understand the type of violence that drug cartels are instigating to different social groups, including young females. It seems that the book advocates for a more objective view of the problem and concentrates in communicate how much working- class women have been targeted by criminal organizations derived from the drug trafficking. Current social and artistic movements fight and push the government to clarify on the origin of the kidnappings, disappearances, and murderings and the relevance of finding perpetrators to put them behind bars...to bring the community some sort of closure. Great job Breane!
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