Gothic Sovereignty: Street Gangs and Statecraft in Honduras

Gang-related violence in Honduras has caused thousands of people to flee, leading to a critique of neoliberal globalization and state corruption. Jon Carter's book "Gothic Sovereignty" explores how the criminal underworld has transformed the lives of young people, tracing the history of imperialism and corruption that shaped it. It describes how gangs have become political and criminal communities in the National Penitentiary, reflecting on the economic, legal, and existential discontents of globalization in late liberal nation-states.

Format: Hardback
Length: 368 pages
Publication date: 01 February 2022
Publisher: University of Texas Press

Gang-related violence has caused thousands of Hondurans to flee their country, leaving behind everything as refugees and undocumented migrants abroad. To understand how this situation came to be, Jon Carter looks back to the mid-2000s, when neighborhood gangs were struggling to survive state violence and mass incarceration. During this time, they found a critique of neoliberal globalization and state corruption that foreshadows Honduras' current crises.

Carter begins his exploration by telling the story of a thirteen-year-old gang member accused of murdering an undercover DEA agent. He then broadens his lens to describe a history of imperialism and corruption that shaped this criminal underworld. This history spans from Cold War counterinsurgency to the "War on Drugs" to the near-impunity of white-collar crime. Carter follows local gangs that embrace new trades in the illicit economy as he delves deeper into this world.

Carter vividly describes the transformation of gangs from neighborhood groups to sprawling criminal societies, even within the National Penitentiary. These gangs have become political as much as criminal communities, exerting influence and power within the prison walls. Gothic Sovereignty sheds light on not only how the revolutionary potential of gangs was lost when they merged with powerful cartels but also how a close analysis of criminal communities enables profound reflection on the economic, legal, and existential discontents of globalization in late liberal nation-states.

Through his meticulous research and compelling storytelling, Carter offers a valuable insight into the complex dynamics of gang-related violence and its impact on Honduran society. His book sheds light on the historical roots of the current crisis and provides a roadmap for addressing the challenges that Honduras faces in the years to come.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781477324158