Abstract:
Through the stories of two women with a long term involvement in the drug trafficking network in slums in Rio de Janeiro, this essay has the goal of problematizing the traditional victimization and submission with which the literature usually characterizes the trajectories of criminal women. What the stories of these two women attest is that the possibility of assuming male roles, as well as achieving the respect and prestige attributed to male gangsters are great motivators in their decision to engage and to remain in the activity. In this sense, it is by appropriating from male characteristics and behaviors, such as violence and submission of women, that these women confirm their limited power.
Keywords:
Women; Drug trafficking; Victimization; Protagonism