Homicídios na América Latina: por uma busca de abordagens extensiva e compreensiva

Abstract

Homicide has been the subject of national and international studies as it represents a universal indicator of social violence. The diversified literature on this theme has highlighted its magnitude, both in socially and economically developed countries as well as in the so-called developing countries. The younger contingent of the population, particularly young males, has been the most victimized and is also clearly the group that most commits homicide. In this respect, Latin America stands out among other regions of the world, having shown growth trends in mortality from this cause in the 1980s and 1990s, where rates continue to remain high. However, the majority of the studies on homicide in the world and the region has focused on national territories and used epidemiological approaches. There are few who formulate comparative analyses or seek to understand the possible similarities and differences between the areas, contextualizing the social, political and economic processes involved within the dynamics that foster the greater or lesser occurrence of these events. This thematic issue represents an effort to conduct extensive and comparative analyses of the information on homicides in countries like Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico and Venezuela. Thus, it presents epidemiological studies on trends in mortality rates, the quality of information about deaths, the specific groups most affected, the means used to perpetrate the lethal aggression and factors that converge and lead to the excessive number of homicides. Moreover, an attempt is made to increas knowledge by adding a comprehensive line of explanation for the high or low rates of death by homicide in specific areas and groups, based on case studies and the gender approach. Several articles included here are the result of the proposal of a group of researchers to conduct a multi-centric study that was consolidated and involved the Latin American Center for Studies on Violence and Health/CLAVES of Brazil and Argentina,