Youth violence in Latin America: gangs and juvenile justice in perspective

Criminal violence has come dramatically to the forefront in contemporary Latin America, to the extent that it is widely considered the critical social concern of the present. Youth are among the principal victims but also the primary perpetrators of this new panorama of brutality. At the same time, the youth violence phenomenon remains profoundly misunderstood, as sensationalist myths and stereotypes abound. Through the juxtaposition of wide-ranging, cutting-edge studies focusing specifically on the youth gang phenomenon and the dynamics of juvenile justice, this volume provides a balanced and systematic comparative overview of the reality of present-day Latin American youth violence.