Futurity Beyond the State: Illegal Markets and Imagined Futures in Latin America.

Instead, state authorities either limit economic activities (working to prevent or punish outlawed transactions) or play a parasitic role (demanding bribes, for example, in exchange for allowing illegal exchanges to take place).[1] If we define illegal markets as arenas of competitive exchange in which the state cannot or refuses to secure property rights, resolve conflicts, or provide other market-related supports, then we have to look elsewhere for these ordering arrangements. Whereas commodities might be variously rendered legal or illegal over time (type 1) and regulations can change (type 5), the legalization of a market for stolen goods cannot happen unless the property rights regime that forms the basis for the market is reworked, if not completely overhauled. From a consumer perspective, illegal actions in legal markets are somewhat similar to markets for stolen goods (type 2) and markets for counterfeits, pirated goods, and forgeries (type 3) in the sense that buyers may be uninterested in the production or procurement process and more concerned with the product's price, availability, or value. This collection of articles features field-based research on illegal markets across Latin America, with special attention to the expectations and representations of the future that surround and emerge from people's involvement in illegal economic activities. We therefore ask: If participation in legal and socially legitimate capitalist markets tends to inculcate people with a shared future imaginary, how might futurity differ among populations who view governments, legal regimes, and corporate power with greater suspicion?. [Extracted from the article]