20.03.2012
Thomas Hurkxkens and Marc Broere created a fascinating documentary for Al Jazeera about the "Mara" (gang) life in San Salvador. It gives a detailed view on some of the neighborhoods where A 01 teamed up with Cordaid Urban Matters in their multistakeholder approach to improve living conditions in social, economical and environmental terms. A first workshop was concluded this month in order to develop an Integral Toolbox for Urban Renovation, as well as a multifunctional pilot project in the area of El Bosque.
Mara literally means "group" in Spanish language; the term was originally used to indicate any kind of social grouping in El Salvador, but it is now applied specifically to gangs. Today's Maras originated in the United States during the 1980s when Salvadoreans, Nicaraguans and Guatemalans fled their countries due to civil wars. It was not easy to find a job in the USA and coming from a hostile background, some formed gangs, following the example of other immigrant, Afro-American and WASP gangs. In 1992 the USA adopted a policy, which made it easier to send back immigrants with a criminal record. Once back in their home country many continued their gang life. In the El Bosque area both the Mara Salvatrucha (commonly abbreviated as MS or MS-13 as they were formed on 13th Street in Los Angeles) and the Mara 18 (originated on 18th Street in L.A.) are active. These are some of the biggest transnational criminal gangs (there are around 350 in El Salvador with an estimated 100 to 200,000 members) as they have spread to other parts of the USA, Canada, Mexico, and Central America. The majority of the gangs are ethnically composed of Central Americans and active in urban and suburban areas. Members of "la 18" and the MS distinguish themselves by tattoos covering the body and also often the face, as well as their own sign language. They are notorious for their use of violence, extortions, drug trafficking and a subcultural moral code including merciless revenge and cruel retributions.
The photography attached to this message is taken from Dutch photojournalist Piet den Blanken's series on Maras in El Salvador and the USA, which was presented in the A Foundation exhibition on Migration and Urban Development.