Abstract
Latin America is one of the most violent regions in the world, and this is particularly evident in its many cities. While urban violence scholars and policymakers generally rely on homicide rates to measure levels of violence in urban environments, these objective indicators often do not capture its realities. By drawing from over six months of fieldwork in the Latin American city of Medellín, Colombia, this paper shows how Medellín has experienced a significant reduction in homicides, but both real and perceived violence continues to have a significant effect on residents’ lives. The article contributes to the urban violence debate by highlighting its complexity in Latin America and how it is not fully quantifiable.
 The article has been kindly translated into Spanish by the author and can be viewed in both English and Spanish
Highlights
According to the United Nations (UN) Office of Drugs and Crime (2013), in 2013 Latin America was the most violent region in the world
There is a general consensus that homicide rates do provide the most convenient and useful indicators of levels of violence; relying exclusively on homicide rates alone to measure such incidences means scholars and policymakers fail to capture the realities of urban violence
Given the recent mass reduction in homicides the city has recently experienced, Medellín has become known as a benchmark for policymakers seeking to understand and implement successful urban violence reduction and prevention policies (Inter-American Development Bank 2009; Muggah 2014, 2015; UN Human Settlements Programme 2007; World Bank 2011, 2016)
Summary
According to the United Nations (UN) Office of Drugs and Crime (2013), in 2013 Latin America was the most violent region in the world. As most of the violence occurs in the cities, it is unsurprising that in 2016 43 of the 50 most dangerous cities in the world were located in Latin America (Igarapé Institute 2016). There is a general consensus that homicide rates do provide the most convenient and useful indicators of levels of violence; relying exclusively on homicide rates alone to measure such incidences means scholars and policymakers fail to capture the realities of urban violence. These can include the effect violence has on the daily lives of residents, how residents respond to violence and community perceptions
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