Urban Youth Marginalization, Policing Strategies, and Rebel Recruitment: Analyzing Gang Dynamics in Post-Earthquake Port-au-Prince

Global Journal of Peace and Conflict Studies | Vol. 9, No. 10, October 2018 | pp. 973–981

DOI: 10.46882/2018/GJPCS/091002

Article Type: Original Research Paper

Title: Urban Youth Marginalization, Policing Strategies, and Rebel Recruitment: Analyzing Gang Dynamics in Post-Earthquake Port-au-Prince

Authors: Jean-Pierre Baptiste¹, Marie-Therese Haddad²

Authors’ Affiliations: ¹Department of Sociology, Université d'État d'Haïti, Port-au-Prince, Haiti; ²Department of Conflict and Development Studies, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium

Abstract:
This paper explores the structural drivers of violent gang consolidation and rebel recruitment among marginalized urban youth in post-earthquake Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Utilizing a spatial mapping methodology alongside 68 semi-structured interviews with active community gang leaders and local residents collected between 2015 and 2017, we analyze the spatial layout of urban security vacuums. The empirical data reveals that the structural collapse of municipal state infrastructure allowed armed criminal networks to assume informal administrative control over micro-neighborhoods. Our statistical analysis demonstrates that heavy-handed, militarized state policing operations targeting informal settlements yield a 55% surge in local youth gang enlistment rates compared to community-oriented policing alternatives. The empirical results confirm that youth mobilization is driven primarily by extreme relative deprivation and a lack of legitimate economic opportunities rather than deep-seated ideological alignments. We conclude that sustainable urban stabilization within fragile metropolitan settings requires shifting resources from reactive paramilitary sweeps toward localized vocational education and independent municipal zoning reforms.

Keywords: Youth Marginalization; Gang Dynamics; Haiti; Urban Violence; Policing Strategies; Structural Collapse

Manuscript Timeline: Received: May 05, 2018; Revised: June 25, 2018; Accepted: July 15, 2018; Published: October 18, 2018

Citation: Baptiste, J. P., & Haddad, M. T. (2018). Urban Youth Marginalization, Policing Strategies, and Rebel Recruitment: Analyzing Gang Dynamics in Post-Earthquake Port-au-Prince. Global Journal of Peace and Conflict Studies, 9(10), 973–981. DOI: 10.46882/2018/GJPCS/091002

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