Policing and Implications for Women

By Sawyer Bannister

“Without wanting to dismiss the agency of women in the perpetration of crimes—which is often framed in contexts of gender victimisation and adverse socio-economic situations— it is predominantly patriarchal structures and gender-based violence that condition women’s participation in criminal activities.” [4]

Background:

Women's Involvement in the Latin American Drug Trade:

The Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) reports that "since the 1980s, women in Latin America" have become increasingly "involved in drug markets." [1] While research reveals that most "women in the drug trade come from backgrounds of social disadvantage," such as domestic violence, economic vulnerability, or racism, it is critical to avoid characterizing women as either 'villains' or 'victims;' therefore, when discussing women's involvement in the drug trade, it is vital to assess the social, political, and economic factors at play. [2] Furthermore, it is critical to note that the drug trade operates in an "unregulated economy" principally "controlled by men." [3] Dr. Corina Giacomello, an expert on the matter, offers a poignant overview of the reality of women in the Latin American drug trade:

As a result, women entering the drug trade often take on low-level jobs, such as "micro-traffickers," with high risk. [5] In organized crime, lower-level jobs are typically targeted more than higher-level jobs by law enforcement for numerous reasons, including: "they’re easy to intercept, simple to prosecute, and frequently subject to extortion." [6] These observations hold true for the jobs mainly occupied by women in the drug trade. Consequently, as women's involvement in the Latin American drug trade increases, so does their incarceration rate. While the increasing targeting and incarceration of women involved in the Latin American drug trade is largely the product of the punitive drug policies emerging from the US's 'War on Drug,' experts point to the connection between the "criminalization of low-level drug crimes" and "structural inequality and poverty" as a more wholistic explanation for increasing incarceration rates. [7]

Increasing Incarceration Rate of Women in the Drug Trade:

Contributing Factors and Legal Aspects:

While the number of men imprisoned on drug charges is generally greater than that of women, research reveals that across Latin America, the incarceration rate of women on drug charges is "increasing at a greater rate" than that of men. [8] As of August 2022, WOLA reports that "35% to 70% of incarcerated women" in a given Latin American country are in prison "for drug offenses," even though studies indicate that "this strategy does nothing to disrupt drug markets." [9]

The ACLU identified several legal aspects as the key factors contributing to the increasing incarceration rate of women in the drug trade: [10]

Statistics and Trends: Latin America:

Inside Out From Women's Prisons: Resisting Punitive Drug Policies

Source: WOLA

Although this video does not exclusively focus on Latin America, it provides valuable insight from the perspective of non-binary people and trans women.

The Implications of Increasing Incarceration Rates of Women in the Drug Trade:

Research reveals the widespread implications of the increasing incarceration rate of women in Latin America due to punitive drug policies. Below are two main examples of such implications:

First, there is a substantial amount of existing research on the abuse prisoners worldwide endure while incarcerated. Specifically, groups such as the ACLU have reported alarming amounts of "sexual and physical violence against women" inflicted by individuals working at the prisons. [11] Additional research explores how a prisoner's background may amplify the long-term impacts of the abuse they endure while incarcerated. In fact, studies show that incarcerated women are more likely to come from backgrounds of "trauma, abuse, or mental health issues." [12] This is especially true for women imprisoned on drug-related offenses.

Second, WOLA found that women incarcerated in Latin America "are more likely to be parents, have more than three children, have become parents as an adolescent;" furthermore, approximately 39% of these women "have incarcerated partners." [13] These findings indicate that the increasing incarceration rate of women in Latin America on drug charges imposes consequences not only on those incarcerated but those dependent on them, especially their children. For example, WOLA reports that the children of incarcerated women in Latin America endure social marginalization and "educational challenges." [14]

Mexico Case Study:

Mexico's War on Drugs and the Increasing Incarceration Rates of Women

Women, the War on Drugs, and Policing Institutions: The Role of the State

Mexico and Femicide:

As mentioned in the "Narcoculture" section of the report, femicide has proliferated across Mexico in recent decades. In addition to the role drug cartels, narcoculture, and widespread corruption play in femicide, increased state policing as part of Mexico's War on Drugs also plays a crucial role. Recently, research has found a significant correlation between the "militarization of public security" in "the Mexican War on Drugs" and increasing gender-based violence, including femicide. [15]

In 2022, Intersecta, a Mexican feminist organization, released a report examining the gendered impacts of increasing "confrontations between" Mexican state "armed forces and alleged criminal groups" within the context of the War on Drugs. [16] Using data from the Mexican government for the time period of 2007 to 2018, Intersecta found that on a municipal level, confrontations between specific governmental armed forces entities and criminal groups resulted in increases in "the number of women murdered" "three months after the confrontations." [17] For example:

From 2007 to 2008, "for each additional confrontation involving [the Secretariat of National Defense] SEDENA, the number of women murdered three months after the confrontations increased by an average of 2.12%."

For "confrontations involving [the Secretariat of the Navy] SEMAR, the estimated increase in the number of women murdered was 12.5% three months after the confrontations."

Furthermore, "the confrontations are associated with an increase in the number of murders of women committed with and without firearms both in the home and on the streets."

Additionally, a report published in 2020 found that, more generally, since the launch of Mexico's highly-militarized War on Drugs in 2006, the rate of women murdered by firearms in Mexico continues to increase exponentially and at a greater rate than that of men. [18] Most notably, from 2007 to 2010, "homicides" of women "by firearm" increased by 716%, whereas "homicides" of men "by firearm" increased by 498%. [19]

Conclusion:

Overall, when analyzing the gendered dimensions of policing and the drug trade in Latin America, it is evident that women face disproportionate consequences. First, most women who enter the drug trade do so within the context of social disadvantage and take on high-risk positions. Consequently, the expansion of punitive drug policies with the War on Terror has significantly increased female incarceration rates across Latin America. Second, in many Latin American countries, such as Mexico, the policies emanating from the War on Drugs have contributed to the further militarization of Latin American societies. In the case of Mexico, the "militarization of public security" has led to increased violent conflict between state military actors and drug-related criminal groups, which in turn has resulted in increased gender-based violence. [20]

In summary, this section of the report aims to demonstrate the ways in which attempts to police the drug trade in Latin America disproportionately harm women.

Al Jazeera English. 2019. “Women Suffer Disproportionately in Mexico’s War on Drugs.” [Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15WaHOpaM3k.

Allard, Patricia, and Kirsten Levingston. 2004. “Caught in the Net: The Impact of Drug Policies on Women and Families.” The ACLU and The Brennan Center for Justice. Retrieved January 17, 2022 (https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/caught-in-the-net-impact-drug-policies-women-and-families).

Atuesta, Laura H., and Estefania Vela Barba. 2022. “The Two Wars: The Impact of Armed Forces Confrontations in the Murders of Women in Mexico (2007-2018).” Intersecta. Retrieved February 22, 2022 (https://www.intersecta.org/lasdosguerras/).

Borders, Lauren. 2022. “Villain or Victim? Understanding the Role of Women in the Latin American Drug Trade.” The Washington Office on Latin America. Retrieved January 20, 2022 (https://www.wola.org/analysis/villain-or-victim-understanding-the-role-of-women-in-the-latin-american-drug-trade).

Fondevila, Gustavo, Ricardo Massa, and Rodrigo Meneses-Reyes. 2020. “War on Drugs, War on Women: Visualizing Female Homicide in Mexico. Women & Criminal Justice. 30(2): 147-154.

Gomes, André. 2022. “Number of Incarcerated Women Worldwide Rises by 60% Since 2000.” Release: Drugs, the Law, and Human Rights. Retrieved February 24, 2022 (https://www.talkingdrugs.org/number-of-incarcerated-women-worldwide-rises-by-60-since-2000).

Kohut, Meridith. 2012. Women in El Salvador’s Ilopango Prison. [Photograph]. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/14/world/americas/in-latin-america-prisons-condemned-to-crisis.html.

Licona, Paulina Cortez. 2022. “Weapons and Feminicides: The Mexican (Misnamed) War on Drugs and Gender-Based Violence.” Release: Drugs, the Law, and Human Rights. Retrieved February 24, 2022 (https://www.talkingdrugs.com/weapons-and-feminicides-the-mexican-misnamed-war-on-drugs-and-gender-violence).

The Washington Office on Latin America. “Inside Out from Women’s Prisons: Resisting Punitive Drug Policy.” [Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOlq2Xvfl4Y.

Tuason, Thayne. 2022. The Purple "Ni Una Mas!" Monument in Mexico. [Photograph]. Retrieved from https://www.talkingdrugs.com/weapons-and-feminicides-the-mexican-misnamed-war-on-drugs-and-gender-violence.