La vida y el poder de desaparición

Reflexiones a partir de los testimonios sobre los sucesos vividos en Tamaulipas en 2010

Abstract

In this article we deal with the issue of “the evil” and the violence that has been experienced by Mexico. We reflect on the practices and mechanisms used by the organized crime, being the State part of that. It is possible to identify concepts such as “the power to disappear” and “precarious lives”, as well as the way in which the State of terror acts, as useful instruments to think about the particular ways in which violence is exercised. These issues are explored by analyzing testimonies of former inhabitants of Ciudad Mier that migrated to Miguel Aleman in order to escape from the violence resulting from disputes between drug cartels. These testimonies allow us to have direct contact with the suffering of those who had to abandon their homes, to observe how their city became a “ghost town” and to witness the murder of neighbors and friends on a daily basis; in addition we identify the way in which violence has been naturalized.