Latin America is one of the most violent regions in the world, and this is particularly evident in its many cities. While urban violence scholars and policymakers generally rely on homicide rates to measure levels of violence in urban environments, these objective indicators often do not capture its realities. By drawing from over six months of fieldwork in the Latin American city of Medellín, Colombia, this paper shows how Medellín has experienced a significant reduction in homicides, but both real and perceived violence continues to have a significant effect on residents’ lives. The article contributes to the urban violence debate by highlighting its complexity in Latin America and how it is not fully quantifiable.

中文翻译：

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哥伦比亚麦德林对暴力的看法和现实

拉丁美洲是世界上暴力最严重的地区之一，这一点在其众多城市中尤为明显。虽然城市暴力学者和政策制定者通常依靠凶杀率来衡量城市环境中的暴力水平，但这些客观指标往往不能反映其现实情况。通过在哥伦比亚麦德林拉丁美洲城市进行的六个月多的实地调查，本文展示了麦德林的凶杀案如何显着减少，但真实的和感知到的暴力继续对居民的生活产生重大影响。这篇文章强调了城市暴力在拉丁美洲的复杂性以及它如何无法完全量化，从而为城市暴力辩论做出了贡献。