Feb 16, 2012

Mexico Violence--Collateral Damage: Being violent and cruel has become “natural,” experts say

Translated by CIP intern Michael Kane

La Jornada: "The violence and cruelty that faces Mexican society is not only creating an increase in fatalities, but also providing for the construction of a social image in which “being violent, aggressive, or cruel forms part of a natural response in our social, work, and emotional lives, and that might be the most serious consequence in the long-term.”

Francisco Javier Huerta Moreno, social psychology expert and coordinator of an international seminar on violence and cruelty in Mexico, noted that drug violence, but also violence that occurs throughout society, “is coming into our homes, into our daily lives like a form of learning, like the law of the jungle.”

The seminar is being organized by the Autonomous Metropolitan University (AMU) and involves sociologists, psychologists, and communications experts. They are planning an investigation of the effects of this phenomenon on Mexico and undertaking observations regarding the violence with a multidisciplinary vision.  The project seeks not only to create a database of facts, but also a space for the discussion of effective proposals for action.

Investigators and professors from AMU-Xochimilco met today in order to discuss the possible scenarios which face the nation as a result of violence and cruelty  This is part of the international seminar which will be continue throughout the year through lectures, panel discussions and analyses, and project development by different specialists.

Huerta Moreno underlined the need for academia to assume its responsibilities in the face of the problems which confront society, and “not limit ourselves to looking for causes, but also try to suggest actions until all levels of government reach a solution.” Spanish original

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