NOTICE: Mexico, the United States, and the myths and realities of MS-13

Jonathan D. Rosen and José Miguel Cruz *

On several occasions, the President of the United States, Donald Trump, spoke of the need to fight the ruthless criminal gang Mara Salvatrucha, also known as MS-13, even referring to its members as "animals".

The president has flattered his administration in the fight against this threatening gang by posting on his Twitter account: "Thousands of MS-13 gang members are being kidnapped by our border patrol and by agents of ICE, but these murderers They are coming back from El Salvador and Mexico, as if nothing. El Salvador only takes our money and Mexico has to help MAS to solve this problem. We need THE WALL! "However, these statements not only ignore the history of the gang, but also do not understand the fundamental nature of the phenomenon, the main reason why young people join the ranks of this criminal group.

Salvadoran immigrants fleeing the violent civil war in their country formed the MS-13 group in Los Angeles, California, during the 1980s. One of the factors that contributed to its creation is attributed to the high level of discrimination within their own social circle, even being intimidated by his way of speaking Spanish. The band offered Salvadoran immigrant youth a sense of community and fraternity, a common identity, which helped them adapt more easily to the Southern California region. At that time, early members of the MS-13 relished rock and roll and "dragged". The gang has its origins and has evolved over time.

While President Trump highlights the immigration policies adopted and implemented by the administration of President Obama as the main responsible for the presence of MS-13 in the United States. The reality is that the same US government, in general, has been responsible for the expansion and strengthening of this gang.

The 1996 law on the reform of illegal immigration and the responsibility of immigrants has resulted in the expulsion of dozens of gang members, including MS-13, in their home country, without even having criminal record. Involuntary consequence of this action, the members took with them their culture and knowledge in gangs.

The deportation of these gang members, combined with other factors such as: high levels of inequality, unemployment and discrimination, in the countries to which they were sent, have greatly contributed to the spread of MS-13, not only in El Salvador, but others countries like Honduras and Guatemala.

Recently, we conducted a field study in which approximately 1200 interviews were conducted with members of various gangs such as MS-13 and Calle 18.[1]among others, in prisons and rehabilitation centers throughout El Salvador. In addition, we conducted 24 more interviews with former gang members in order to to understand more deeply the phenomenon of gangs.

In our study, we found that only 3.1% of the MS-13 members joined the gang in the United States, while 28.5% joined the metropolitan areas of San Salvador (MASS with its acronym in English) . . More than 68% of respondents indicated that they got into the gang somewhere else in the country. Another important finding of our research shows that, for the most part, Salvadoran gang members have never been to the United States. Our results indicate that less than 5% of MS-13 members aged 13 to 17 were in US territory.

It is important to mention that gang members belong to extremely disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds and high levels of violence. We found that 71.3% of respondents had a family income of less than $ 250 a month. Only 3.4% of gang members in this study had a family income of $ 501 or more. A former member of the MS-13, aged 19, stressed the links between poverty and the presence of gangs. This member said: "Many young people are looking for this [pandillas] because of poverty, because they can not find jobs or stop studying. "

In addition to living in extreme economic conditions, Salvadoran gang members also have a low level of education. In fact, 41.6% of the respondents had a secondary education level, while 35.2% had completed their primary education. Studies indicate that young people who they lack educational skills to compete in the formal economy and, as a result, they may be attracted to the criminal world.

One of the gang strategies is to try to create a connection with disoriented youth who do not work or study. A former member of MS-13 told us: "They [MS-13] they are looking for children about 8 years old… In my neighborhood, for example, there are children of 5 or 6 years old who are already entering … and it is a shame because they are already starting to bear arms. You can see an 8-year-old boy shooting with a gun. The gang raises this because they are children and benefit from their innocence. They are not trying to recruit adults, but young people. "

It is difficult to understand the main reasons why a person joins the ranks of one of the the most violent and ruthless criminal groups in the Western Hemisphere. The reality is that street gangs provide young people living in poor socio-economic environments with a source, a safety net and the opportunity to obtain financial resources. According to our study, 59.2% of respondents stated that at least joining the gang gave them a sense of well-being and confidence, while 53.1% reported obtaining material goods.

The majority of respondents also stated that by joining a gang they had succeeded in to obtain the respect of society and protection against threats. A former member of MS-13, who had left the gang 8 months before our interview, commented: "When I was running there [con la pandilla]They have taught me to respect people. When a person has a problem with a gang member, she does not have a problem only with that person, but with the rest of the group. It causes problems, it causes deaths. "

In conclusion, rigorous and punitive strategies aimed simply at expelling, arresting or imprisoning gang members do not understand or address the underlying structural issues. We need to invest more resources to tackle factors that first of all explain the reasons why young people are involved in gang life. Under-educated young people from poor communities, who often live in neighborhoods beset by crime and violence, are most likely to be recruited by gangs such as MS-13.

The simple act of imprison members of these criminal groups As a result, this whole generation of young people is trapped in the penitentiary system, which is often used as "crime schools. "

If regional problems are not resolved at the root, it is unlikely that the gang phenomenon will disappear.

* Jonathan D. Rosen is Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice at the Holy Family University in Philadelphia and José Miguel Cruz is Director of Research at the Latin American and Caribbean Center Kimberly Green of Florida International University.

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