According to recent studies from the Mexican National University system, millions of Mexican teens are being swept into the drug cartel wars in roles as victims or perpetrators. Because of the high rate of teen unemployment in Mexico, many of them are turning to organized crime as a means of making money. Teens are being recruited out of the Mexican slums and are paid as little as 100 to smuggle drugs or even to kill someone. Many are calling on Mexican president Felipe Calderon, to create opportunities for these teens and take them off the street. In Ciudad Juarez alone (considered to be one of Mexico’s most violent cities) there is an estimated 45 percent of residents between the ages of 13 and 24 who are either on drugs or involved in crime related drug activities. Ciudad Juarez is said to be the home of most murderous city on the face of the planet. Many of the people in Juarez are uneducated and unemployed. Slum areas extend up in the hills and valleys. It is reported that criminal cartels are the only source of work and that mafia will now pay a young person $1,000 per trip if he or she will smuggle drugs across the border. Drug gangs pay youth as little as $100 to take someone out. President Felipe Calderon says he is working hard to bring better opportunities to young people. Inspite of the devastating drug situation, there has risen out the the ashes a hero. A 20 yr. old working mother and criminology student named Marisol Valles has decided to become a role model for her commmunity. Last month she was sworn in as police chief in the community of Praxedis Guadalupe Guerrero, which is upstate from Juarez. She has become known as “the bravest woman in Mexico. She took the job because no one else had the courage to take it. The last police was kidnapped and decapitated. Her desire is to build a place where young people can fulfill their hopes and dreams.
Related Articles
- Mexico’s Lost Youth: Generation Narco (time.com)
- Calderon tries to cut crime in Mexican drug war city (reuters.com)
- Mexico hunting 12-year-old drug hitman (msnbc.msn.com)
- Risks grow for those whose lives straddle border (msnbc.msn.com)
- Two more women join Mexico’s police chiefs (msnbc.msn.com)
Kairos7's Blog 