Sebastián A. Cutrona - Böcker

Coinciding with a wave of drug policy liberalization around the world, this book analyzes the experiences of Argentina, Portugal, and Uruguay in their efforts at depenalization, decriminalization, and legalization/regulation of recreational drugs. The authors present the successes and challenges of the approaches and their impacts on drug use, public health, and security, debunking some of the myths surrounding flexible drug policies along the way.Contrasting the three liberalization cases with the criminalization approach of the US at federal level, the book offers policy recommendations and lessons learned from the historical trajectories and policy reforms in addressing drug consumption and its associated harms.

This superbly edited volume provides scholars and general readers with an in depth view of the evolution, nature, dynamics, and consequences of the global cocaine industry. Cocaine: The Global Reach of the World’s Most Lucrative Illicit Drug offers an unprecedented global analysis of the cocaine trade, revealing how the world’s most lucrative illicit market operates today. Unlike previous works that focus on individual countries or regions, this volume takes a global view of the cocaine supply chain, tracking the drug’s journey from coca fields in the Andes to consumers in New York, Lagos, Rotterdam, Sydney, and beyond. With contributions from leading scholars in criminology, sociology, and political science, it sheds light on the expanding networks of criminal organizations that connect producer countries in Latin America to consumer markets worldwide. The book explores the profound transformation of the cocaine market, which has shifted from being dominated by a few powerful cartels to a fragmented and highly competitive underworld. Colombian, Mexican, and Brazilian organizations have traditionally controlled the market, but new actors, including Nigerian and Albanian syndicates, have emerged as key players. From the rise of transshipment hubs in West Africa to nontraditional trafficking routes in Asia, this volume demonstrates how criminal organizations adapt to evolving market demands and law enforcement crackdowns. Just as multinational corporations streamline production, cocaine traffickers around the world manage logistics, transportation, and financial flows across continents. Yet unlike legal industries, the cocaine market thrives on secrecy, violence, and corruption, making it one of the most resilient global enterprises. By bridging theoretical frameworks from different disciplines, this volume deepens our understanding of how the global illicit economy functions. From the campesinos harvesting coca to the street dealers in Europe and the United States, the book emphasizes the interconnectedness of all actors in this lucrative, dangerous market. Furthermore, it critiques the failures of international counter-drug efforts, revealing how institutional corruption and state fragility perpetuate the trade. This book is an essential resource for policymakers, scholars, and anyone seeking to understand the complexities of the global cocaine economy.

This superbly edited volume provides scholars and general readers with an in depth view of the evolution, nature, dynamics, and consequences of the global cocaine industry. Cocaine: The Global Reach of the World’s Most Lucrative Illicit Drug offers an unprecedented global analysis of the cocaine trade, revealing how the world’s most lucrative illicit market operates today. Unlike previous works that focus on individual countries or regions, this volume takes a global view of the cocaine supply chain, tracking the drug’s journey from coca fields in the Andes to consumers in New York, Lagos, Rotterdam, Sydney, and beyond. With contributions from leading scholars in criminology, sociology, and political science, it sheds light on the expanding networks of criminal organizations that connect producer countries in Latin America to consumer markets worldwide.The book explores the profound transformation of the cocaine market, which has shifted from being dominated by a few powerful cartels to a fragmented and highly competitive underworld. Colombian, Mexican, and Brazilian organizations have traditionally controlled the market, but new actors, including Nigerian and Albanian syndicates, have emerged as key players. From the rise of transshipment hubs in West Africa to nontraditional trafficking routes in Asia, this volume demonstrates how criminal organizations adapt to evolving market demands and law enforcement crackdowns.Just as multinational corporations streamline production, cocaine traffickers around the world manage logistics, transportation, and financial flows across continents. Yet unlike legal industries, the cocaine market thrives on secrecy, violence, and corruption, making it one of the most resilient global enterprises.By bridging theoretical frameworks from different disciplines, this volume deepens our understanding of how the global illicit economy functions. From the campesinos harvesting coca to the street dealers in Europe and the United States, the book emphasizes the interconnectedness of all actors in this lucrative, dangerous market. Furthermore, it critiques the failures of international counter-drug efforts, revealing how institutional corruption and state fragility perpetuate the trade. This book is an essential resource for policymakers, scholars, and anyone seeking to understand the complexities of the global cocaine economy.

Leading scholars and policy analysts from around the Americas come together to untangle the factors that have fuelled the implementation of mano dura politics, their rising popularity, and impacts across nine widely heterogeneous countries in Latin America.Beginning with a discussion on the concept of mano dura, the editors move to survey various theoretical approaches to punitivism, and later review of the empirical research evaluating different drivers behind the adoption of tough on crime policies. Since hard-line initiatives often have consequences beyond the general goal of reducing violence, they then analyze the impacts of these policing strategies on crime rates and different democratic institutions. Country chapters on Mexico, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia, Brazil, and Argentina follow a common thematic structure to answer the following questions:What are some of the trends in gangs, organized crime, and violence?How have governments responded to combat crime and violence?What factors have fuelled the implementation of mano dura policies?Why are mano dura policies popular?What have the consequences of these policies been?Mano Dura Policies in Latin America is essential reading to students of Latin American studies, political science, public policy, and criminal justice. It will also interest scholars working on drug trafficking, organized crime, and violence in Latin America.

Leading scholars and policy analysts from around the Americas come together to untangle the factors that have fuelled the implementation of mano dura politics, their rising popularity, and impacts across nine widely heterogeneous countries in Latin America.Beginning with a discussion on the concept of mano dura, the editors move to survey various theoretical approaches to punitivism, and later review of the empirical research evaluating different drivers behind the adoption of tough on crime policies. Since hard-line initiatives often have consequences beyond the general goal of reducing violence, they then analyze the impacts of these policing strategies on crime rates and different democratic institutions. Country chapters on Mexico, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia, Brazil, and Argentina follow a common thematic structure to answer the following questions:What are some of the trends in gangs, organized crime, and violence?How have governments responded to combat crime and violence?What factors have fuelled the implementation of mano dura policies?Why are mano dura policies popular?What have the consequences of these policies been?Mano Dura Policies in Latin America is essential reading to students of Latin American studies, political science, public policy, and criminal justice. It will also interest scholars working on drug trafficking, organized crime, and violence in Latin America.

The ongoing opioid epidemic in the U.S. is just a glimpse of a complex ecosystem characterized by the interaction of multifaceted actors from various countries around the world cooperating across different stages of the global supply chain.In Fentanyl: From the Labs to the Streets, twenty-one experts provide a comprehensive multidisciplinary analysis of the fentanyl supply chain, guiding the reader through the complex supply chain, the nature of criminal and state actors, and the linkages between different regions around the globe. Four parts divide the book, each one showcasing a relevant phase within the global fentanyl supply chain as well as the main mechanisms and processes shaping them. The chapters analyze the fentanyl trade from different levels of analysis while also maintaining synergies between chapters in their treatment of similar, interwoven issues related to the various phases of the fentanyl supply chain, the role of criminal organizations, and some law enforcement practices.Fentanyl will be an excellent resource to students and researchers across the social sciences and particularly in political science, international relations, and criminology. It will also appeal to scholars working on drug policy, epidemiology, illegal markets, organized crime, and policing.