Carlos A. Aguirre, Robert Bufngton, eds.. Reconstructing Criminality in . Wilmington Del.: Scholarly Resources, 2000. 254 pp. $60.00, cloth, ISBN 978-0-8420-2621-5.

Reviewed by Ira Beltran-Garibay

Published on H-LatAm (April, 2002)

Reconstructing Criminality in Latin America Aguirre, "Bibliographical Essay." - Selected Filmog‐ Contents: - Robert Bufngton, Introduction: "Con‐ raphy ceptualizing Criminality in Latin America." - This book compiles a sample of some of the Michael Scardaville, "(Hapsburg) Law and (Bour‐ recent research on the history of crime and judi‐ bon) Order: State Authority, Popular Unrest, and cial systems in Latin America from the late colo‐ the Criminal Justice System in Bourbon nial period to the 1990s. The book attempts to City." - Sarah Chambers, "Crime and Citizenship: shed light on the social and cultural constructions Judicial Practice in Arequipa, Peru, during the of crime in Latin America. The whole time span Transition from Colony to Republic." - Richard from the late colonial period to the late twentieth Warren, "Mass Mobilization versus Social Control: century is well represented. However, the region‐ Vagrancy and Political Order in Early Republican al representation is less extensive. Of the ten arti‐ Mexico. - Thomas H. Holloway, "Punishment in cles included in the book, four are devoted to Nineteenth-Century : Judicial Action Mexico, three to and one to Brazil, Peru as Police Practice. Pablo Piccato, "Urbanistas, Am‐ and respectively--a shortcoming that re‐ bulantes and Mendigos: The Dispute for Urban fects the state of the research in the feld, where Space in , 1890-1930." - Kristin Rug‐ most studies are being carried out by historians of giero, "Not Guilty: Abortion and Infanticide in the frst two countries. Nineteenth-Century Argentina." -Katherine Bliss, Some of the articles have been published pre‐ "Guided by an Imperious, Moral Need: Prostitutes, viously. Scardaville's selection is a shorter version Motherhood and Nationalism in Revolutionary of a work published in The Americas (1980); Pablo Mexico." - Laura Kalmanowiecki, "Police, Politics Piccato's piece is part of his 1997 dissertation and Repression in Modern Argentina." -Alma (Duke University Press, 2002); and Alma Gullier‐ Guillermoprieto, "Medellin, 1991." - Carlos A. moprieto's article frst appeared in the New York‐ er (1991) and was reprinted in her collection The H-Net Reviews

Heart that Bleeds: Latin America Now (Knopf, tween the 1830s and the 1850s were those that 1994). represented resistance against forced military re‐ The selection focuses on the relationship be‐ cruitment and other state incursions into private tween the state and its citizens within the legal life. Thus, Salvatore suggests that these crimes sphere. The majority of the works view judicial must be viewed as conscious attempts to defy of‐ practices mainly as tools for social engineering, cial policies. and conceive crime as the contested result of such Pablo Piccato presents a similar argument in‐ elite practices. Most of the works implicitly as‐ troducing the crucial category of space into the sume the Foucauldian interpretation of judicial discussion of public order. His analysis of the con‐ practices as means of social control. For example, sequences of city planning in Mexico City during Richard Warren expands our views of vagrancy the Porfriato and early post-revolutionary period laws arguing that in early independent Mexico, informs our views on the ways in which elite con‐ fear of mass mobilization, to a greater extent than ceptions of adequate uses of public space interact‐ labor scarcity or the need for war recruits, in‐ ed with discourses of criminality that marginal‐ spired vagrancy laws. Competing elites were able ized the urban poor. City planners attempted to to circumvent the popular mobilization that sup‐ modernize the city departing from the multi-class ported their claims to power through the con‐ dwelling model that had existed since colonial struction of laws that criminalized the lower times. Basic services were introduced to the new classes. Thomas Holloway sees the creation and residential neighborhoods. Nevertheless, the ar‐ development of the police in nineteenth-century eas where most of the urban poor lived were ne‐ Brazil as stemming from the desire to maintain glected, forcing their inhabitants to maintain social relations as dictated by the needs of the practices such as street peddling and the use of slave system. For her part, Laura Kalmanowiecki public space for many "private" activities. Elite shows that the use of illegal procedures by Argen‐ perceptions of such activity as threatening the tine modern police, as well as its impunity, can be public order put government authorities at odds traced back further than the "" that ren‐ with the urban lower classes who had to disre‐ dered them worldly notorious. At the turn of the gard regulations in order to survive. While Picca‐ twentieth century, elites perceived political mobi‐ to makes no claim as to the intent of people's deci‐ lization to be Argentina's most pressing social sions to disregard government regulations, his problem. Such perceptions prompted reforms that analysis of popular resistance to social control turned the police into a tool of state control, em‐ resonates with Salvatore's proposition that subal‐ phasizing intelligence gathering and repression tern agency must be seriously considered when rather than the protection of citizens from crime. examining the social construction of crime. Ricardo Salvatore reassesses representations Most selections in the book attempt to explore of gaucho culture in the province of Buenos Aires the theme of social control and its contestation by mid-nineteenth century. He demonstrates that "from the bottom up." Sarah Chambers explores statistical data contradicts accepted views of a the appropriation of new discourses of civic generalized state of violence in the countryside. virtue and public order by the lower classes in His analysis not only shows that the number of ar‐ early independent Peru. Republican governments rests in the province was rather low, but also sug‐ attempted to impose new controls on the recently gests that most ofenses were perpetrated against created citizenry by reorganizing the criminal jus‐ the state rather than against property or individu‐ tice system, in order to make it more rational and als. The ofenses most frequently prosecuted be‐ efcient than its colonial predecessor. Enhanced

2 H-Net Reviews by a rising state of crime due in part to the tur‐ an's right to choose was valid if her principal con‐ moil of independence struggles, the judicial reor‐ sideration was protecting her honor. ganization increased the regulation of daily activi‐ The theme of honor is treated in several of ties previously tolerated, as republican govern‐ the pieces in this book and illustrates the ways in ments attempted to reform the morality of the which cultural approaches to the history of crime population. Chambers' contribution to the discus‐ and the justice system are contributing to our un‐ sion of legal practice in the state-building process derstanding of these issues. Ruggiero's work rests lies in her analysis of citizens' responses. With the on her analysis of the concept in specifc Argen‐ transition from monarchy to republic, the new tine laws. Pablo Piccato's piece explores contested rhetoric of popular sovereignty and civil rights of‐ defnitions of "gente decente" as urban planners fered citizens a discourse they could employ to re‐ and city dwellers vied for public space. Chambers sist the impositions of the state. A similar argu‐ discusses the overlapping of the colonial value of ment is found the article by Katherine Bliss on honor in the judicial system with notions of re‐ prostitutes in post-revolutionary Mexico. Al‐ publican virtue. Analysis of such ambiguous and though state eforts to regulate sexual commerce fuid categories have allowed historians to shed marginalized prostitutes, the revolutionary light on the cultural constructions of crime, law rhetoric aforded them a chance for organized re‐ and the judicial system with encouraging results. sistance which they used in written complaints The majority of the compiled works empha‐ addressed to government ofcials. Her analysis size social control and popular resistance to judi‐ not only contributes to the debates on resistance cial policies. In his article on late colonial Mexico, from below, but also sheds light on the gendered Michael Scardaville presents an alternative ap‐ of the judicial system. proach. He convincingly argues that people The gendered aspects of judicial practice are showed confdence on the judicial system, grant‐ also examined in Kristin Ruggiero's work on abor‐ ing legitimacy to the late-colonial state and con‐ tion and infanticide in nineteenth-century Ar‐ tributing to prevent open rebellion in Mexico City. gentina. Her fndings inform our understanding This is an original perspective that opens up a of the cultural determinants of the justice system, complementary venue for future research. As we and the priorities that often superseded concerns explore the judicial system as a pivotal aspect of about criminality in the courtroom. Ruggiero the relationship between citizens and the state, shows that punishment for women perpetrators we might ask ourselves why individuals chose to of those crimes was determined by notions of fe‐ approach the judicial system. Research into the male honor. Her research adds to the still scant consensual nature of law would require paying but growing literature on women's history in the attention to crimes such as robbery, fraud or sex‐ region which is informing our understanding of ual ofenses which citizens denounced with the the cultural constructions of femininity that have expectation of obtaining certain benefts from often shaped state policy. Her work contributes to state intervention. the discussion of patriarchy and the justice sys‐ About half of the works selected present sta‐ tem by illustrating the fuidity of patriarchal laws. tistical data, a contribution in itself to a feld that The defense of female honor, that has often al‐ has yet to develop the construction of quantitative lowed governments to circumscribe women's be‐ series that proved so useful to historians of crime havior, served women accused of abortion and in‐ in Europe. Thus, we owe to Chambers a series for fanticide to secure lenient punishment or escape the number of criminal trials in Arequipa from it altogether. Argentine judges found that a wom‐ 1785 to 1849, and the number of registered mur‐

3 H-Net Reviews ders in the same city between 1785 and 1834. crime and criminality infuence the way in which Warren provides percentages of convictions for the state interacts with citizens in the realm of the vagrancy in Mexico City 1797-1866. Holloway judicial system. All the same, it is important to re‐ presents data for the number of reported crimes member that the emphasis that the selection by category in Rio de Janeiro in 1862 and 1865. places on the relationship between state and citi‐ Salvatore ofers an estimated reconstruction of zens does not refect all the current literature on absolute crime rates in the Province of Buenos crime and judicial systems. As some of the com‐ Aires 1831-1851 and their percentage by category, piled authors have stated elsewhere, crime is a so‐ as well as data for the military service of prison‐ cial phenomenon that pits citizens against each ers in the Province of Buenos Aires during the other, as much as citizens against the state. The same period, the campaigns in which arrested inquiry into criminality and judicial practices people had participated, their demographic mo‐ might shed light into relations within society as bility and occupation. Given the problems of fnd‐ well as on the relationship between society and ing sources in the region, particularly for the the state. nineteenth century, such data will prove useful Copyright 2002 by H-Net, all rights reserved. not only for analyses of these areas, but also for H-Net permits the redistribution and reprinting of future comparative studies. While the usefulness this work for nonproft, educational purposes, and reliability of quantitative data in studies of with full and accurate attribution to the author, crime is passionately debated among historians, it web location, date of publication, originating list, is worthwhile not to abandon the goal of recon‐ and H-Net: Humanities & Social Sciences Online. structing such series, especially given the possibil‐ For other uses contact the Reviews editorial staf: ity that archives all over Latin America may still [email protected]. ofer plenty of useful data. Alma Guillermoprieto's poignant article at the end of the book, presumably included to provide classroom discussion on social violence in con‐ temporary Latin America, is the only piece that does not analyze the role of the state. It is sure to elicit debate in the classroom given the preva‐ lence of discussion on drug trafc in today's me‐ dia. Nevertheless, given that it is a journalistic piece, the article lacks the historical background that could help students understand the processes that might lead a society to the dramatic state of social violence that present-day Colombia is expe‐ riencing. Carlos Aguirre's brief bibliographical es‐ say at the end will prove useful to anyone who wants to become acquainted with the feld, and the selected flmography will provide teachers with useful tools to spice up discussion on many of the themes raised in the book. Overall, this is an excellent selection that il‐ lustrates the ways in which social constructions of

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Citation: Ira Beltran-Garibay. Review of Aguirre, Carlos A.; Bufngton, Robert, eds. Reconstructing Criminality in Latin America. H-LatAm, H-Net Reviews. April, 2002.

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