Debts of Criminality and Violence: On the Origins of the Differentiated Endemic Violence Between Centers and Peripheries

Abstract

Starting from the study of the historical inequality that has characterized the relationship between center and peripheries we address the existance of the great gap in the rates of violence and criminality between both areas of the Long Duration. We propose the concept of "criminal debt", which suggests that centers should somehow take responsability for the historical damage that the peripheries have suffered due to the existance of an "unequal exchange" (in a similar manner to the concept of "ecological debt"). The inequality in turn has been made greater due to phenomena such as political and armed interventions, wars, political colonialism, and economic colonialism, among others. In order to achieve our objective we first, recapitulate some theories about violence and criminality that address the center-periphery gap from the point of view of the world systems perspective. Next, we move to a more empirical analysis by looking in to the secular inequality between regions in economic terms. Finally, we describe in broad terms (using statistical evidence) some issues pertaining to crime and violence which are typical of the peripheries, focusing especially on Latin America and highlights the existing disparity between the Global North and the Global South. We conclude with an exploratory definition of "criminal dept" wich draws on the prior analysis.