Welcome to NARCAS - it is the culmination of some 20 years of my reporting in Latin America for international media, most recently VICE News.
The first section is reporting and analysis on women in Latin America’s criminal underworld. The second is fiction writing—progressive work on a novel I am working on about a female foreign correspondent based in Mexico reporting on the cartels.
After neatly two decades in the region, I have come to believe that much of what we see of women in the criminal underworld is the product of a white “male gaze” that works within the confines of its own assumptions and constructions. Female narratives, or non-binary male narratives of any kind, were missing.
So I wrote a series for VICE about women connected to the Sinaloa Cartel, as well as a book called “NARCAS: The Secret Rise of Women in Latin America’s Cartels” (Beacon Press July 2023).
What NARCAS Will Give You
You’ll read about women you’ve never heard of who have dominated in the organized crime world, as well as the women around them.
You will also, I hope, become invested in the story of our female protagonist and the consequences of her pathological curiosity.
Who Are You and Why You Should Read This.
Apart from my mum, you’re my regular readers or people interested in thinking differently about women, narrative and crime. Or maybe you just want to read some really good stories, interviews and commentary from underreported sections of the criminal underworld.
How You Can Get Involved
First of all, subscribe of course. But after that…..Do you have a past or present working in crime? Do you know any women in crime from Latin America or around the world who want to tell their story? Are there historical figures you think deserve attention from this field? Are you an expert with a new or deviant point of view on this? Have you deviated from expectations with unexpected results? Reach out and tell me your story.
Who Am I?
I’m formerly the Editorial Director for Latin America for VICE News, and during my 20 years based in Latin America I have reported for a number of titles including the Guardian, the Telegraph, AFP, Insight Crime, GlobalPost and others.
