Research Proposal

Dru McInerney

Research Proposal

4/3/14

Looking at the monetary value of laundered money, specifically narco-dollars, can this form of monetary value have a positive effect on community?

When you talk about laundered drug money, you often think of the violence of the drug trade. The violence associated drug cartels from South and Central America. The money made and laundered from drug trade (narco-dollars) is considered blood money. However, if looked at more closely could these narco-dollars have a positive effect when they are being pumped back into local economies?

Lets take Miami, Florida in the 1980’s for example. Miami pre 1980’s was a small quaint city that was known for vacationing. Enter into the early 1990’s Miami is a booming economic city. This can be accredited to large amount of narco-dollars coming from cocaine trade with Colombia. When these cocaine dealers from Colombia began to traffic cocaine through Colombia they started to make small fortunes in narco-dollars. Narco-dollars are a monetary spending that is technically legal in the United States. There is no proof that they are an illegal entity. So as most drug dealer tend to do, they spend their narco-dollars as fast as they made them. This doesn’t just stimulate the luxury car and jewelry businesses but a large majority of this money is going to real estate. As cocaine became the largest business in Miami behind tourism in the 1980’s (economist 1982) the skyline began to rise in the city. With the real estate boom you began to see more people moving to the city. More jobs were being made behind the sponsorship of narco-dollars.

Miami is an example of instance where narco-dollars can be considered as being able to build and develop a community. You also see a large development of Latino community in Miami as these narco-dollars are being spent. Many people are coming from Southern and Central America to be part of the booming economy. This begins to turn Miami into the hub of Latino culture in North America. This can be compared to Seaford and the use of religion to bring the Ancient Greek community together. The sponsorship of narco-dollars was able to develop a hub for the Latino community to gather and begin to live the American dream.

Works Cited

1.             Gootenburg, Paul. "The "Pre-Colombian" Era of Drug Trafficking in the Americas." Academy of American Franciscan History. 64.2 (2007): 133-176. Web. 17 Mar. 2014.

·      This source talks about what cocaine trafficking was like before Colombia became the main country. It talks about what events lead to Colombia becoming a major player in cocaine trade. It also talks about what America was like before Colombia made cocaine more mainstream. This article allows me to look into what economies were like before cocaine traffic became such a large entity.

2.             Grosse, Robert. "The Economic Impact of Andean Cocaine Traffic on Florida." Journal of Inter-American Studies and World Affairs. 32.4 (1990): 137-159. Web. 17 Mar. 2014.

·      This source was designed to teach the reader about the relationship of narco-traffic from Colombia to Florida. This article has five main points it talks about. All five points are the based on the economic relationships between Colombian cocaine traffic and Florida. It talks about the relationship with crime, the medical and rehabilitative costs, employee production, Financial flows from laundered money and what Florida would be like if there was no cocaine laundering. These are topics pertaining to aspects of Florida’s economy based on cocaine trade.  The topic about the money laundering is key information for my argument. It helps me illustrate how much money was available to help build Florida’s economy.

3.             Nijman, Jan. "Globalization to a Latin Beat: The Miami Growth Machine." Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science. 551 (1997): 164-177. Print.

·      This journal article discusses the economic impact of Latin Americans on the Miami area. It specifically talks about the perceptions of drug trade within this population. It also chronicles the growth of the Latin American population from the late 1970’s until the mid 1990’s. This helps me identify the economics of before and after the drug trade amongst Latinos. It also helps me understand the economic impact of Latinos coming into Miami and influencing it.

4.              "Foundations For the Future." Economist [London] 16 10 1982, 7259 n. pag. Print.

·      This article discusses the economic recession taking place in the United States in the early 1980’s. It specifically highlights Miami, FL and how it has managed to have its economy grow in light of the recession. It talks about how the banks having been growing and so has the real estate market, even in lieu of an economic downfall. This helps support my article that drug trade-affected Miami’s economy in a positive way.

5.             
"Miami City, Florida." American Fact Finder. United States Census, n.d. Web. 25 Mar 2014.

·      This is comes from an economic database called American Fact Finder. This Database allows me to compare business, real estate and crime statistics from the 1980’s all the way to 2010. It helps me produce all around statistics comparing the height of the drug trade to more recent Miami.

6.

Salama, Pierre. "The Economy of Narco-Dollars: From Production to Recycling of Earnings."nternational Journal of Politics, Culture, and Society . 14.1 (2000): 183-203. Print.

·      This source describes the process into which narco-dollars are made and then put back into the economy. It discusses the trends of drug dealers and how they spend their money. This will help my argument with direct evidence from Colombian drug cartels.

7.

Guizado, Alvaro. "Perspectives on Narcotics Trafficking in Colombia." International Journal of Politics, Culture, and Society. 14.1 (200): n. page. Print.

·      This article talks about the effect of the drug business on cities in Colombia. It also discusses the migration to the United States. This is important to my argument because it will help me depict the migration and building of the Latino community in Miami, FL and in other United States cities. Also provides perspective with opposing points of view. Dicussing the negative effects of Latin culture.

8.

Bartilow, Horace. "Free Traders and Drug Smugglers: The Effects of Trade Openness on States' Ability to Combat Drug Trafficking." Latin American Politics and Society. 51.2 (2009): 117-145. Print.

·      This Journal discusses a legislative rule that is controversial because some believe it makes it easy for drug smugglers. Others argue that it makes it more difficult for smugglers. Provides information on how drug smuggling is a global business. Provides estimation on how much money is made in laundered money.

9.

Gilbert, Alan. "The Latin American City ." Canadian Journal of Latin American and Caribbean Studies. 24.47 (1999): n. page. Print.

·      This journal talks about the “Latin City” in America. Which talks about mostly Miami and Los Angeles. It discusses the Latin community with percentages and figures. This will be important when I cross reference this with the migration to  the United States due to narco-dollars.

10.

Smith, Barbara. "We're Here to Sta'y: Economic Restructuring, Latino Migration and Place-Making in the US South." Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers . 33.1 (2006): n. page. Print.

·      This article talks about the migration of Latino’s to southern states in America. It discusses the obstacles and hardships they face. But also discusses how this has built there community. Provides persepective on the Latin American community in states and cities with high volumes of drug trafficking.

11.

O'brian, Patrick. "Tracking Narco-Dollars: The Evolution of a Potent Weapon in the Drug War." University of Miami Inter-American Law Review. 21.3 (1990): n. page. Print.

·      This article discuses narco-dollars and the process they go through to become legitimate money. It also discusses the spending of this monetary value. Where drug dealers are most likely to spend this money. This will help my argument because I will have more background knowledge on narco-dollars and where they get spent.