ABSTRACT
The last 30-years have manifest a rising challenge by transnational organized crime, both globally and specifically along key smuggling and trafficking routes, posing a growing challenge to local communities, states, and regions. Institutions have become compromised, inequalities become more evident, and violence has risen, while at the same time becoming increasingly difficult to resolve. However, communities are not background players in crime wars. They are the essential players in recovery from criminal conflicts and resilience to conflict re-emergence. This chapter details how communities and individuals in a variety of countries have sought to recover from and build resilience to criminal conflicts. It begins by offering a definition of community resilience, including the identification of the actors involved. Next, it offers illustrative examples of resilience building approaches. Third, the challenge posed to resilience efforts, by both criminal and government actions, is detailed. Fourth, it analyzes the counter-intuitive resilience offered by smuggling and illicit economies, and the risks posed to such stability by securitized approaches to organized crime. Finally, the chapter concludes with a brief set of reflections on resilience, and avenues forward for research and activism.
