Abstract

PABON SUAREZ, Ingrid Carolina. YOUTH, CRIME, AND “SOCIAL CLEANSING” IN BOGOTÁ. anal.polit. [online]. 2021, vol.34, n.102, pp.95-122.  Epub Feb 02, 2022. ISSN 0121-4705.  https://doi.org/10.15446/anpol.v34n102.99937.

Based on the life experience of Camilo, an inhabitant of the Patio Bonito neighborhood in Bogotá, this article shows how young people living in conditions of poverty become visible because of the practices they implement when transgressing coexistence pacts, not because of their marginal condition. The article seeks to demonstrate that these young people are one of the population groups victimized by a violent practice widely recognized as “social cleansing.” What is the cultural base that supports the deployment of violence by young people in their neighborhood contexts? The ethnographic work highlights two key elements: masculinity and the notion of respect. How is this connected to a violent practice like “social cleansing”? To answer this question, the study examines what the undesirability of a young-subject entails.

Keywords : Urban violence; youth; “social cleansing”; anthropology; ethnography; Bogotá.

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