Topic Gang Violence in Ecuador
5 sources
* Freeman, Will. “Ecuador’s Crime Surge Is Devastating, but There Is a Way Forward.” International New York Times, 19 Aug. 2023, p. NA. Gale Academic OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A761365437/AONE?u=anon~342ea12b&sid=googleScholar&xid=6c54b422. Accessed 21 June 2024.
* Brotherton, D.C., Gude, R. Social Control and the Gang: Lessons from the Legalization of Street Gangs in Ecuador. Crit Crim 29, 931–955 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10612-020-09505-5
* Inigo Alexander No ‘clear way out’: How Ecuador descended into gang violence 14 February 2024 https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/2/14/no-clear-way-out-how-ecuador-descended-into-gang-violence
* Michele Bertelli Threats and street justice: How violence is transforming life in Ecuador 26 January 2024 https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/1/26/threats-and-street-justice-how-violence-is-transforming-life-in-ecuador
* David Culver Gangs,Abel Alvarado and Carlos Martinelli gunmen and cartels running amok. As terror grips the streets of Ecuador, even the armed forces live in fear January 25 2024 https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/25/americas/ecuador-gangs-terror-cartels-intl/index.html
DESCRIPTION OF ASSIGNMENT
For this assignment, you are required to write a 1,500-2,000 word research paper (+/- 250 words; about
6-8 pages) on a current event in Latin America. Your paper will: 1) describe and provide background on
the topic you chose; 2) link the topic to the broader issues of democratic governance/democratization and/or
economic development models; and 3) discuss the significance of the topic for the broader Latin American
region. You must choose a topic from the list on page 3. You may also propose a topic as long as it is a
current issue. All topics are subject to instructor approval (see below). After choosing a topic, follow the
steps for completing the assignment outlined below.
STEPS FOR COMPLETING ASSIGMENT
1. Choose a topic and submit at least five sources you plan to consult to write the paper.
• You must use a minimum of five sources including at least one scholarly book or journal article.
The other four sources may be a combination of: a) scholarly sources; b) course readings, including
your textbook and other articles; or c) articles/documents from reliable and credible news outlets,
websites, (international) organizations, government documents, or official reports or statistics.
Follow suggestions concerning how to evaluate the quality of your source from this Purdue OWL
resource page: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/553/1/.
• You may need to consult more than five sources in total for your paper and additional sources may
include additional non-scholarly sources as appropriate.
• All websites must be approved by the instructor via email (i.e., send me the link to the website
and the instructor will send you back a verdict). If you have any questions regarding sources, and
what is and is not appropriate, please ask me.
• The Research Paper Topic and Preliminary Sources form needs to be completed and submitted to
the instructor for approval no later than Sunday, June 23rd, by midnight via Canvas. Use the
Chicago Manual of Style Author-Date citation system to format the bibliographic references for
your proposed sources.
• Approval of topics will be granted a few days after you submit your proposed topics so that you
can get started on your paper outlines right away. Failure to submit this the Research Paper Topics
and Preliminary Sources Form on time will result in a 5 percentage-point deduction from the final
grade of your paper.
2. Once your topic is approved, begin researching and outlining your paper.
• Prepare your outline according to the three components of the paper described above (description
of topic/background, link to democratic consolidation/governance and/or economic development,
and significance for Latin American region; see below for more details on these).
• Start by reading the preliminary sources you collected on the topic. You may find you need to do
additional research and be sure to check the bibliographies of your sources to get ideas about what
additional information is out there. Different sources may have different opinions about the topic –
it is helpful to discuss these perspectives in your paper and why they might vary
• For each section of your outline, provide details about the points you will discuss in that section of
your paper and identify the source of your information for each point. It is recommended that you
include the page number so you can easily find the information again when writing your paper.
This will help you to remember where your information came from and which source to consult
for information about specific details. You are encouraged to share your outline with me for
feedback!!
3. After you have researched, read, and outlined, begin to write your paper. The paper should be 1,500
to 2,000 words (+/- 250 words), not including title page and bibliography. As mentioned above,
your paper must provide/discuss the following:
A. Description of and background on the topic. A good way to approach this is to think about how
you would explain the topic to someone who does not know anything about it. What would be
important to include in your discussion in order to provide this person with enough information to
get a good understanding of topic? Why is this topic important? What historical
events/developments that led to the emergence of this issue. What background information is
necessary for understanding the current issue? Again, think about how you would explain the
background to your topic to someone who knows nothing about it. What pieces of information are
essential?
B. Link the topic to the broader issues of democratic consolidation, governance, and/or economic
development models: In this course, we explored democratization, the challenge of democratic
governance in Latin America, and different economic development models. Does your topic relate
to democratization, governance, and/or economic development? If so, discuss how. For example,
what are the implications of the topic of your paper for democracy and democratic governance?
Are there any implications for economic development? Does political or socioeconomic inequality
play a role in your study? Think about the different challenges and opportunities for democracy we
studied in this course, as well as the types of economic development models (neoliberalism vs.
state-centered models). You do not have to address both democratization and economic
development. You can choose one or the other, but if you feel discussing both is helpful to your
paper, by all means do so.
C. Significance of the topic for the broader Latin American region: In this last part of the paper,
explore the significance of this topic and its potential outcomes for the Latin American region as a
whole. How could it affect the broader politics of the region? How and why is the topic significant?
If it isn’t significant, why?
GRADING
You will be graded on how well you address these elements/questions in your paper. Be sure that you cover
them all. Be succinct in your writing and get straight to the point. Organize your paper well and write
clearly. Papers that receive high grades will have met all these guidelines, moved beyond them, and clearly
demonstrate critical analysis. If you need help or would like me to have a look at your outline, please feel
free to ask and send!
DUE DATE
Papers are due on Wednesday, July 3rd, by midnight via Canvas (as an MS Word or pdf document).
Be sure to have a look on at the policy on late assignments in the course syllabus.
Good luck!
☺ Be CREATIVE ☺ Have FUN ☺ Choose an INTERESTING topic ☺
Remember to…• Review the plagiarism warning in the syllabus.
• Stay within the assigned word count.
• Outline your paper before you write to ensure good organization and a coherent structure.
• Use sub-headings to organize your paper.
• Cite, cite, cite!
• Include a bibliography with consistently and correctly formatted citations – use Chicago Manual of
Style Author-Date system to format your citations
