Vigilantes and State Control of Violence: A Security Assemblages Approach

• In Event: New Frontiers in the Study of Crime and Violence

Abstract

The notion that states pursue a monopoly over the use of force rings increasingly hollow. From vigilantes that patrol the US’s southern border, to thugs for hire in China, even the world’s most militarily powerful states are characterized by the presence of non-state violent actors. These trends are more pronounced in comparatively lower capacity states. A burgeoning political science scholarship seeks to account for this diversity of armed actors, and their impact on security and state authority. Extending these insights, this article works with the concept of “security assemblages” to foreground historically-embedded relations among violent actors and institutions. The article conducts a mixed-methods nested study of vigilantes in Uganda, finding that vigilantes are more common where other authorities are present, and are more helpful when other authorities are also more helpful. Focusing on dynamics between vigilantes and police, the article pinpoints their historically distinct roles: the police were established as a colonial era institution to suppress political dissent, while vigilantes have long been socially embedded actors tasked with everyday security provision. Thus, in this case, police and vigilantes are not substitutes; they play distinct and complementary roles. The article makes three contributions: first, in low-capacity states, violence is not zero-sum. Rather, it is assembled among diverse actors, which have historically embedded comparative advantages. Therefore, second, such states do not necessarily seek to maximize control over violence. Third, these choices occur in already thick institutional environments, meaning that violent actors, including the institutions of the state, are often constrained in terms of who they work with and how.

Author

• Rebecca Tapscott