Narcos Stereotypes

I would say we’ve all been stereotyped at some point, be it due to your sex, gender, race, or religious beliefs, the list goes on. Some are blissfully oblivious when in the face of being disrespected and or stereotyped, some just don’t care to look further into the situation. Others simply “take the high road”, doing the right thing even if it’s not easy nor popular in a difficult situation. Most often we can’t help the labels which society places on us, we were born with the skin color we have, our values ingrained into us by our families, and so forth. Personally, I’ve faced stereotypes relating to my race.

Gregory Nava’s 1983 film, El Norte, is by far one of the most honest and eye opening depictions of the experience many undocumented immigrants and refugees have when trying to come to the United States. By challenging the ethnocentric tendencies of the North American film industry and the general negative stereotypes of Latinos in film, Nava is one of the first writers/directors to break away from the typical representations of Latinos and give such true representation and discussion of many issues surrounding Latinos, immigration, and American society and values. The film focuses on two young Mayan brother and sister, Enrique and Rosa, from their flight from their village in rural Guatemala to their life of hardship and isolation in Los Angeles,

Drugs and violence are universal. Although not all drugs cause violence some drugs like alcohol, methamphetamine, and crack cocaine do and can have horrible results. Some of the behavior that these drugs can cause are: domestic violence, sexual assault, homicides, and property crimes. Although horrible things do happen people still use them and crimes like these happen too much. This is a social issue because people see this as a norm. This shouldn't be a norm and people need to start realizing that.

Stereotypes are uneducated opinions towards a certain group, most commonly used within races, skin colors, and cultures. Stereotypes are usually from a majority group towards a minority group. Most of us do not think about it much but, Stereotypes are in our everyday lives, and everyone has taken part of a stereotype, either they have been the one stereotyping or they have been the victim of a stereotype and has been stereotyped. Throughout my life, I have heard a lot of stereotypes towards my kind, and more than likely it is always a negative stereotype. Some stereotypes through time die-off but as they die-off, new stereotypes flood or society. I am a minority, I am Mexican-American and classify myself and embrace myself as one. The stereotype that I have experienced the most is that all Mexicans are unintelligent delinquents. The stereotype of Mexicans being unintelligent and lazy was influenced by the media. Media sources in our lives skew the way we judge people. This stereotype may be taken lightly by everyone who iterates it but what is not taken into account is the effect this stereotype has in the community for those of us that are Mexican. It has a negative impact on my community, I noticed that the negative effect of this stereotype starts by influencing a couple of individuals and then expands to the community as a whole. The stereotype that Mexicans are these unintelligent delinquents gets planted in our heads at a young age and that affects the way some of

“He’s a young Latino what is he doing in this neighborhood? he must be lost, he has to be poor.” that’s just one of the stereotypes I hear often. “Hispanic people are poor” When in fact most Hispanics are well off. Yet repeatedly I have heard that stereotype in movies, songs, shows, and school. I have been through this many times as I have lived up through 19 years of existence. Its something that I have gotten accustomed too.

Have you ever had a loved one deported? Thousands of Central Latin American families have been deported. These families have crossed over for a new start, hoping to pursuit a better life for their children. Last year the Immigration and Custom Enforcements got a hold of 72,000 deportations of parents who claimed to have U.S born children. I do not believe people should be deported because it causes families to be separated, kids grow up without their parents, and it causes emotional distress for everyone.

Given our current entertainment choices such as television, movies, or social media platforms it is not difficult to find a portrayal of a stereotype. There are many stereotypes out there in the world about certain races, religions, or even genders. Some stereotypes that are currently very popular would be “black people are ghetto and uneducated” or “all Muslims are terrorists”, yet time and time again we see these stereotypes being broken such as when we encounter a black doctor or a Muslim who has served in the military. As a young Latina woman who is of Mexican decedent I have not been exempt from the multiple stereotypes that surround the Latino culture. There are the harmless ones which state that all Mexicans like chile or eat tacos which

Like many other countries in Latin America and across the globe, Peru is no stranger to the economic and social impacts of illicit drug trade. However, unlike most other countries in the region like Colombia, Peru does not experience a high rate or organized crime or violence surrounding the drug trade. Although violence is minimal, the growth of cocoa and the production of cocaine is a massive industry within the country, creating an interesting dynamic between the people of Peru, those involved in the drug trade, and the Peruvian Government. The drug trade in Peru has been fueled by the geography, structure of the criminal groups involved, perceived corruption of the military and police forces, and an ineffective and overcrowded prison system.

During the early 1990’s Colombia being one of the biggest exporters of narcotics in history, led by Pablo Escobar, who had a wide range of organized crime affiliations throughout Latin America. Pablo Escobar was a Colombian drug lord and he smuggled narcotics all the way to South Florida as when authorities tried to capture him. One of Pablo Escobar’s most important alliances was that of the Mexican-based traffickers. Escobar knew that this was an important trade route because of its geography and how it would be easier to smuggle the narcotics into the United States. This allowed a smuggling partnership between both countries and Mexico was to eventually lead their own drug based trafficking system with the help of Pablo Escobar. From the distributed drugs, cartels would take a certain amount of profit, and would use that money to bribe Mexican officials. By bribing Mexican officials it was insured that if smugglers were to be arrested they would either be let go, the case would be dropped or taking action against a rival smuggling group by giving away information about the rival’s plan to carry

The earning of mass amounts of drug money has created a debate about whether the drug trade has helped or hurt the Colombian economy. Specifically, the debate centers on how narcotics have affected the economy in the short and long runs because the drug trade, in reality, has brought in millions of dollars. How this money, earned by trafficking drugs, has returned (or not returned) to the country and its population through its

Drug trafficking is a major issue in Colombia, causing many other issues across the country. Many people involved in the drug trade including civilians are being killed, kidnapped, and injured over this problem. Over the years, the government has started cracking down on the growers, producers, and sellers but so far, they have only caught minor criminals. The government is making agreements with neighboring countries and finding alternative uses for the crops to slow down the production of drugs. Despite all of the efforts being made to stop drug trafficking, violence, and production the cartels are still thriving throughout Colombia.

Violence in modern Colombia takes place in many forms. The three major categories are crime, guerrilla activities, and attacks committed by drug traffickers. Violence has become so widespread and common in Colombia that many people have now become numb to it. The Colombian economy has also benefited from the illicit drug trade; however violent it may be. During the 1970s, Colombia became well known, as one of the world’s most important drug processing, production, and distribution centers for marijuana and cocaine.

In its latest original series “Narcos”, Netflix presents a compelling fictionalized account of the rise and fall of infamous Columbian drug lord, Pablo Escobar. The 10 episode biopic, released on August 28, 2015, divulges the decades of corruption and sovereignty of the Medellín drug cartel in the 1980’s. “Narcos” delivers an original script, a unique visual style and stellar performances across-the-board. Though the world is no stranger to drug-war and mob-crime documentaries, this new series offers a fresh and captivating expose of the immense wealth and bloodshed during Pablo Escobar’s reign as the “King of Cocaine”.

Drug cartels have grown and expanded throughout the interior and exterior of states for many years. The way drugs started to be introduced to Mexico, Colombia, and other places around the world was believed to be a myth. It was a tale that was known by many through storytelling, which over the years turned into an actual realistic issue. One of the most known cartels that existed for a long time was The Medellin Cartel. It became a subculture of its own, creating a world full of violence, women, money, firearms, death but most importantly power and fear. Located in Colombia this brutal subculture will show how they become one of the wealthiest subculture in the world surpassing even its own country’s riches.

The King of Cocaine, Pablo Escobar, was a Colombian drug lord who created the Medellin Cartel and was once one of Forbes’ Magazines wealthiest people (Levinthal, 2012). Pablo Escobar was born in 1949 in Colombia to a father was a peasant farmer and mother who was a school teacher (Thompson, 1996). His aspirations for a large life began when he was young and he dreamed of becoming the president of Columbia. However things changed when he realized that being legitimately wealthy would require him to be a criminal. Prior to being involved in drugs and smuggling, Pablo was a petty street thief and would steal cars (Jenish, & Wirpsa, 1993). As his criminal activity grew he would gain a name for himself on the streets that would ultimately prepare