When I Wear My Alligator Boots RQ's
1. What is a narcocorrido? Please explain this term and its place in both historical and contemporary Mexico. How are these songs part of contemporary drug trafficking culture? What is the style and persona associated with this music?
A narcocorrido is an extremely popular genre of folk song in northern Mexico. Corridos are ballads that tell the history of men and women working in the drug business, venerating the lives of famous narcotraffickers and often commissioned by the traffickers themselves (Muehlmann 2014:25). The perceived power of the songs is also attested to by government efforts to prohibit their distribution and performance. Although violence is portrayed in nearly every song, the point of this genre of music is not to naturalize violence or desensitize the public to its horrors. Instead, corridos are locally understood to heighten awareness of the violence connected to the war on drugs. "They describe the protagonists' rural and humble past, often beginning with a traumatic incident in which they experienced some injustice, narrating their rise to power, which invariably involves violence both perpetrated and survived, and ending with a description of how they are now revered and feared" (Muehlmann 2014:87). Corridos are considered "poor people's music," and this is the main reason they are considered dangerous. The music is reaching the people who would most likely be drawn into the drug business. In reality, this genre of music gives poor people a sense of personification. Some have argued that corridos are a form of resistance to state corruption and the oppression of the local poor. Others have argued that they are a symbolic resource for healing the suffering on the border, mostly caused by the poor relationship between the United States and Mexico. The style/persona associated with this music is the classic chero (cowboy) consisting of alligator boots, a wide belt with a metal buckle, and a cowboy hat.
2. Explain the alternative frameworks the author is providing for understanding the drug trade. How is this different than predominant explanations for drug trafficking?
Typically, drug trafficking is explained with emphasis on criminality and intentional acts categorized by high-level king pins and extreme violence within the drug industry. However, Muehlmann has provided numerous alternative frameworks for understanding the drug trade in Mexico. For instance, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) played a major role in the rise of narcotrafficking cartels in Mexico. The agreement essentially created one-way paths to the United States from Mexico making drug trafficking that much easier. Also, the drug trade and neoliberal economic policies reinforce one another. NAFTA was a neoliberal created agreement, therefore neoliberalism has a symbiotic relationship with the very illegal market that the United States claims to prohibit. The drug trade has also become amorphous is many communities, meaning that it affects everyone, not just those directly associated in the trade. Almost all the money that flows through Mexico has been somehow incorporated in the drug trade at some point in time. Also, with lack of legitimate job opportunities and no way to legally support their families, the only viable way to provide and survive is through the drug trade.
3. How did NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) facilitate sweeping changes in drug trafficking?
The signing of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was supposed to open trade between the U.S. and Mexico, however the end result was very different. Increased legal trade between the United States and Mexico also facilitated increased illegal trade, because the same routes could be used to smuggle narcotics across the border with much more ease. The flooding of Mexico with cheap agribusiness-produced corn also put many Mexican farmers out of business, making them turn to illegal drug cultivation and trade as an alternative to the devastation imposed by U.S.-imposed neoliberalization. NAFT profoundly transformed the dynamics of the border. NAFTA also created increased migration to the United States, prompted not only by a lack of jobs but also by a reduction in wages and fewer benefits in the few jobs left. The opening of trade routes have contributed to the increased security and military presence on the border. These increases in personnel have only intensified the tensions on the border and increased the hostility of Mexicans towards the United States.
4. Is there an alternative explanation for the rising militarization and violence of the drug trade in Mexico other than those that rest on criminality or strict behavioral explanations?
The increase in violence and rising militarization of the drug trade in Mexico can be directly associated with the war on drugs that has been created by both the United States and Mexican governments. Illegal trafficking is often well known to U.S. federal law enforcement and Mexican security sources. However, mounting prohibition efforts have continued to selectively thwart the flow of illicit goods. The escalating tensions created by these contradictory efforts resulted in an even more violent upsurge in 2006 with the militarization of the war on drugs (Muehlmann 2014:14). Many observers have argued that the violence in Mexico has skyrocketed because of the militarization of the war on drugs. The United States and Mexico continue to impose a "war" that has been a complete failure and is lucrative for both the countries and the markets involved.
5. What are the elements of the narco economy? How does this penetrate the everyday experiences of the rural poor in Mexico?
The narco economy is an alternative, informal economy created through drug trafficking that exists for individuals outside of the legal economy. Through narcocorridos and the cultural personas evident in rural Mexico border areas, it is presumed that this economy can provide social and financial mobility for those involved, however this is not the case. Only a select few get to live the lavish life of being a drug king, free from all troubles, and making huge sums of money. The majority of the people involved in the narco economy risk their lives everyday for these drug kings and cartel leaders just to put food on the table for their families. In this narco economy, authorities are often paid off by narcos to gain access to guarded trade routes. Also, certain cartels have long-term arrangements providing privileged access to checkpoints, crossings, money laundering operations, and political decision making. The narco economy presents an alternative to social and economic marginalization.
6. How does the role and image of the narcotraficante create an allure for individuals to enter the drug trade despite the danger of violence and/or prosecution?
The drug trade allows some people, especially young men, to draw on the sense of pride and defiance that characterizes the popular northern Mexican persona of narcotraficante and the rich cultural matrix from which this figure emerges. The persona of the traficante resonates historically with a legacy of U.S.-Mexican antagonism on the border that has been fueled by the militarization of the region and the lack of other viable routes of upward mobility. The narcotrafficker is portrayed as fearless and violent. "As many scholars and commentators have pointed out, narco-culture valorizes a particularly masculinized ideal of the "valiente" or "brave rooster" that taps into what is commonly referred to as machismo, a gender ideology already considered to be widespread in Mexican society.
7. How is the role of women in the drug trade rendered invisible? Please explain through an example of a woman depicted in the ethnography.
Media representations of the drug cartels and the war on drugs almost exclusively focus on men. Music videos of corridos show tough-looking guys driving huge trucks and wielding AK-47s, often accompanied by busty, bejeweled, and beautiful women who appear backgrounded, as decoration. The social roles available for women in the drug trade, though diverse, contrast in significant ways with those available to men. The principal way in which women are made vulnerable by the drug trade's grip on the region is through the loss of loved ones to jail or death as a result of their involvement in, or encounters with, the trade. It is not uncommon in the rural north for narcos to intimidate people into allowing their homes to serve as "stash houses" for drugs between deliveries or sales. An example from the ethnography illustrated how Paz's life changed once her son Andrés was arrested. Paz would visit Andrés' old boss with hopes that he would have her son released. She would also give the prison guards bribe money to keep her son safe. Lastly, Paz recalled that one time Andrés's old boss arrived and asked her for a "favor," wanting to leave some packages in her house for a few days. It was right after Andrés had gone to jail, and Paz felt that she had to say yes, for she thought that maybe it was a test of her loyalty (Muehlmann 2014:41).
8. How has drug addiction emerged in Northern Mexico and impacted its population in recent years?
In the United States, decades of narcotics prohibition have helped produce the highest incarceration rate in the world, as well as the highest number of drug users in history. Drug addiction lies at the heart of the contradictory logic that underpins prohibition efforts: it's the official rationale behind illegality. Also, local representations of the trade downplay Mexican consumption and addiction and emphasize that the demand for illegal narcotics is in the United States. However, with the huge demand from the United States and the circulation of drugs through northern Mexico have made some drugs extremely accessible and relatively affordable, especially those that are most addictive. "This is especially true of methamphetamine because it is manufactured there, not just transported through. As we shall see, one of the reasons that this area has seen a stark rise in addiction rates in rural colonias is precisely because drugs are illegal and thus both a valuable and unregulated commodity" (Muehlmann 2014:125). Drug addiction takes over people's lives. They lose their trust and support of their loved ones as they do everything and anything to support their addiction. Women with addictions experience a strong stigma that is not equally projected onto male drug users. This is usually linked to the expectation that women have more child-rearing responsibilities than men.
9. How is it riskier not to get involved in the drug trade?
Perceptions of risk are determined both by cultural values and by social relations. Risk is not simply weighed against financial gain. It's also weighed against social debts - what individuals owe their children, their friends, their partners, and those who have helped them before. Many people feel as though it is far more riskier not to get involved in the drug trade that it is to get involved. In other words, many people have more to lose by not agreeing to participate. Also, it is riskier for people not to participate because ultimately they are already positioned in the drug trade regardless of whether they "choose" to take on the role of smuggling or stashing drugs. For example, it would have been far more dangerous for Paz to say no to El Gordo and not allowed him to leave packages in her house, and it would have been unthinkable for Lupita to have refused to help with the cash that they would be carrying in Don Emmanuel's car anyway.
10. Explain the author’s statement that the ‘war on drugs’ is really a war on the Mexican poor.
Throughout the ethnography, Muehlmann illustrates how the war on drugs is really a war on the Mexican poor. From the individual level, if an individual is caught trafficking drugs, laundering money, or even just selling drugs, they are typically penalized for their actions whether it be through a large fine or time incarcerated. However, when it comes to major institutions such as Wachovia for example, even when these companies are caught for crimes like money laundering they are let off the hook. These major institutions admitted to laundering billions of dollars for drug cartels, however, the United States Justice Department decided it was in the best interest of everyone to not criminally prosecute these institutions. The United States government is well aware of how these companies abuse the system, however their reason behind letting it happen is that pressing charges could severely and negatively affect the financial system in the United States. "In fact, the constant representation of narcos as Mexicans hides the fact that a huge percentage of the profits of the drug trade go to the United States, not just to the criminal syndicates but also to major financial institutions and their shareholders" (Muehlmann 2014:173). But when it comes to the lower class and poor, no matter their involvement in the drug trade, they are typically punished much more severely. Muehlmann gives a perfect example when addressing narcocorridos. She states "corridos are considered 'poor people's music,' and this is the main reason that they are considered dangerous: the music is reaching exactly the people who would most likely be drawn into the drug business" (Muehlmann 2014:100). The government is more concerned with stopping the poor from entering the drug trade, even though with the lack of legal jobs available, the drug trade is literally their only option.
11. What are the author’s critiques of the ‘war on drugs’ and her premise that the prohibition of drugs in the United States exacerbates drug trafficking and creates violence rather than the Mexican supply of drugs?
First off, it is the illegality of drugs that creates the opportunities for traffickers in the first place. Because of prohibition in the United States, there is an extremely high demand for illegal drugs and this is where Mexico comes into play. One of the main points throughout the ethnography is that the illegal drug trade is one of the only areas available for upward mobility. Many observers have argued that violence has skyrocketed in Mexico because of the militarization of the war on drugs. Prohibition policies and U.S. and Mexican interdiction efforts have not stopped the flow of illegal drugs. Most professionals argue that by legalizing and regulating use (as in other countries), prices would drop, the illicit trade would collapse, and Mexican cartels would lose their portion of the global drug profit. In conclusion, this could stop the war on drugs and the violence that comes with it.