Drug Wars In Mexico
A wise man once said, “I’m the king of the trap, El Chapo Jr”, this man was 2 Chainz. I’m talking about El Chapo and Mexican drug wars in general. Unlike most other research paper topics, drug wars are going on right now. In fact, from the time that you woke up yesterday morning to the time that you went to sleep last night, about 103 people died because of the drug war. Mexican drug wars are the result of killing for money, long time gang feuds, and because of the actions of high level drug lords. Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto has made progress in stopping the drug violence. He has done things such as dropping homicide numbers 30% and arresting Joaquin Guzman in 2014.
Money is the main reason for The Drug War. If it wasn’t for the billions of dollars involved, most people probably wouldn’t get involved in the lifestyle. Mexico, on average, spends about $431,000,000 per year on illegal drugs. Mexican authorities have revealed that drug cartels earn an estimated $64,340,000,000 per year off of the United States alone! That is enough money to buy every NBA and NFL franchise (therichest.com). It’s not only large industries that make billions of dollars. Forbes Magazine estimated that his net worth is in the billions. The United States Government announced that a $5,000,000 reward was waiting for anyone who gave information leading to his location and arrest.
Car·tel (kärˈtel) n. An association of manufacturers or suppliers with the purpose of maintaining prices at a high level and restricting competition. Drug cartels pretty much run Mexico. The three main cartels in Mexico are the Tijuana, Sinaloa, and the Mara Salvatrucha Cartel. The Tijuana Cartel traces back the the Sinaloa State. Founded in the 1960’s, the founders were Pedro Aviles Perez, Rafael Caro Quintero, and Ernesto Fonseca. It is important to note that the gang is a shell of what it was in the late 1990’s (Insight Crime, 2015).
The Sinaloa Cartel, often described as the largest and most powerful drug trafficking organization in the Western Hemisphere, is where the famous drug lord, El Chapo, thrives from (Insight Crime, 2015). El Mayo is second in command with the Sinaloa. While El Chapo has been sidelined in jail for short periods of time El Mayo takes over and handles things to perfection. El Mayo is a 68 year old man that has been in the business his whole life. He was the leader of El Chapo’s escape from prison in 2001 and in 2015. The origins can be traced back to Guadalajara cartel. In 1985 the cartel was involved in the 1985 torture and murder of a U.S. drug enforcement agent. While Mexico and the United States were on the hunt for whoever was behind all of this the cartel split up into multiple groups. The Sinaloa Cartel came out the most powerful.
The Mara Salvatrucha Cartel is considered the most powerful street gang in the Western Hemisphere. They rob and bully their way into neighborhoods and have turned to crimes such as human smuggling and drug trafficking. The Mara Salvatrucha Cartel (MS13) was founded in the “barrios” of Los Angeles in the 1980s. The gang was made from immigrants to the United States because of a civil war going on in El Salvador, their previous home. The gang’s members are often decorated with tattoos all over their body, and often on their face. National Security and Foreign Affairs Reporter JP Carroll said, “MS-13 tattoos partially mean loyalty to the group or ‘family,’ but they mainly demonstrate the identification to a specific lifestyle, representing the culture of the street. Also in this scenario, tattoos were like like a ‘baptism’ of the member into a group, representing the turning point of the appartenance” (The Daily Caller).
El Chapo is right behind Pablo Escobar when it comes to most notorious drug lords in history. El Chapo was born in La Tuna somewhere from 1954-1957. There are no existing birth certificates of him that we know of. El Chapo is a professional at escaping prison. His latest escape was in 2015 from the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan, New York. He escaped through a 60 foot deep tunnel leading him to freedom. In the 10th-floor Special Housing Unit, known by its acronym, the SHU, pronounced like “the shoe,” around a dozen prisoners spend 23 hours a day in 20-by-12-foot cells, prohibited from communicating with one another. Meals are eaten in cells, and exercise is in a recreation area specifically for these inmates (Fox News). El Chapo has a lot of power in Mexico and all over the world. He became the Sinaloa Cartel leader in 1980 and needless to say, he’s a billionaire.
The Mexican Drug Wars will end soon. The FBI is cracking down on leaders more and more every day. Drug lords like El Chapo are always going to be on the run, Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto has already made a ridiculous amount of progress but he won’t be stopped until the fighting stops. The Mexican people live in fear every day. The people of Columbia believed that just because you are involved in the drug scene doesn’t make you a bad person. Pablo Escobar is known as a hero in Columbia. He took care of the people of his country. The people of Columbia saw him as a father.”Behind every crime is a story of sadness”- Enrique Pena Nieto.
Works Cited
Crime, InSight. “Tijuana Cartel.” InSight Crime | Organized Crime In The Americas. Insight Crime, 17 Nov. 2015. Web. 27 Feb. 2017.
“Drug Cartel.” Britannica School, Encyclopædia Britannica, 6 May. 2016. school.eb.com/levels/high/article/drug-cartel/607942#334007.toc. Accessed 7 Feb. 2017.
“Enrique Peña Nieto.” Britannica School, Encyclopædia Britannica, 12 Jan. 2017. school.eb.com/levels/high/article/Enrique-Pe%C3%B1a-Nieto/599569. Accessed 7 Feb. 2017.
“Joaquín Guzmán Loera.” Britannica School, Encyclopædia Britannica, 19 Jan. 2017. school.eb.com/levels/high/article/Joaqu%C3%ADn-Guzm%C3%A1n-Loera/600397. Accessed 7 Feb. 2017.
“Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13).” Britannica School, Encyclopædia Britannica, 26 May. 2016.
school.eb.com/levels/high/article/Mara-Salvatrucha/627101. Accessed 7 Feb. 2017.
Post, Latin. “How Mexican Drug Cartels Earn Billions in Drug Trade.” Latin Post. KJ Marino, 03 Feb. 2016. Web. 28 Feb. 2017.