The Ambiguity of Violence, Secrecy, and Trust among Colombian Drug Entrepreneurs

Abstract

Drug entrepreneurs are frequently portrayed as being violent, secretive, and only willing to work with trusted “equals.” However, these images often contrast with the social reality of drug dealing and dealers, which is more mundane, consensual, and public than imagined. Moreover, Colombian drug traffickers are either pushed to perform in accordance with such perceptions or simply to exploit their violent or secretive reputations. In addition to the actual use of violence, secrecy, and trust, drug entrepreneurs often use these resources strategically as a form of manipulation to either defend themselves, to gain power, or to construct their social or ethnic identities. While these resources serve as essential tools for business performance, they also constitute obstacles for success. The time is past for guns and killings and massacres. We have to be cunning like the business people, there's more money in it and it's better for our children and grandchildren. Mario Puzo, The Godfather