The "Culebras" From Caracas.

The city from the children's perspective.

"Those are the culebras (snakes in Spanish), the ones that bite, spit poison, and kill people. I am terrified of them."

Drawings of "culebras" (snakes), made by children from a community called: Cota 905 in Caracas Venezuela. 

This phrase was said by Ignacio, an 8-year-old kid who lives in a neighborhood called "El Cementerio" in Caracas, while he was drawing the things he did not like about his community. In his drawing (shown below), he pictured: images of "culebras" (1), his family crying (2) and without money to buy food (3), fights inside his community (4), and shootings between criminal gangs and the police (5). These images expose a complex and harsh reality for any kid, but that is normal in the streets Ignacio plays every day.

Drawing made by Ignacio about the things he does not like about his community.

In Caracas, "culebra" (snake in Spanish), does not only mean an animal, but it is also an idiom that refers to disputes and fights between people, especially young men from vulnerable communities who end up killing each other. The culebras are known for creating violence cycles. The murder of someone takes his family and friends to swear vengeance, and further on, another family tries to get revenge back. This cycle creates mortal discussions that pass from generation to generation.

Ignacio daily listens to his family say things like: "He had a culebra and died," or "a culebra killed him." Meaning that people they knew died because of these arguments. But listening to this made him believe that there are dangerous animals that kill people inside his community. "Culebras" that make him live in constant fear that his family members might be the next victims.


The drawings of the kids

Ignacio is not the only one that lives like this. In the communities of "Cota 905" and "El Cementerio," there are dozens of children who are also exposed to armed violence. 

With the objective of understanding how do kids experience the streets of their neighborhoods, a group of children from these communities was asked to draw different aspects of the place they lived in. 

They were explicitly asked to draw those things they did not like about their community. 

They demonstrated a precise knowledge about guns, drug consumption, and the violence that has taken the life of many of their families and friends. 

These images show the "culebras" of their community, and the rough experiences they live every day. 

Sadly, this is not a surprise; Caracas is one of the most violent cities of the world, with a homicide rate of 60 for every 100.000 inhabitants, so violent deaths are prevalent in many sectors.

So far, most of the attempts to reduce these rates have focused on intense repressive actions. 

Between 2009 and 2011, there was an increase in the massive incarceration of young men. The prison population rose from 30.483 to 50.000 prison inmates in only 4 years. 

Also, from 2015, several police raids trying to repress crime with a heavy hand have committed multiple violations of human rights. Only in Caracas, the "Victims Monitor" has registered 801 extrajudicial executions from 2017 to the present. 

Never the less, as the kid's drawings show, Caracas citizens and especially vulnerable groups are still suffering from this violence. 

This is a problem that cannot be faced only with repressive measures. The solution resides in the prevention work, done with strategies that use data and evidence to prove its efficacy. 


Urban Violence in Caracas. 

The people that suffer the most dreadful consequences of violence are the ones that reside in non-planned urban settlements, and therefore live in contexts of social exclusion. In these sectors, families live with limited access to public services and resources, which only increases their vulnerability. Families like Ignacio's that try to survive a complex humanitarian emergency.

At first glance, it might seem that the entire surface of Caracas is violent; but when the crime is analyzed, violent actions concentrate in particular places. These delimited areas are known as hotspots. If those places where violence happens more often can be identified, strategies directed to prevent crime can be focused in these locations, increasing the success and efficacy of security policies and programs. 

It is proved that a preventive approach to violence is a crucial component to promote the development of children like Ignacio. For this reason, Caracas Mi Convive has georeferenced 1.967 violent deaths in Caracas, and that were registered by the "Victims Monitor." This allowed generating a hotspot map that locates those places that need urgent interventions to protect the life of Caracas citizens.

Homicide hotspot density (250m of range) - Monitor de víctimas

The results are impressive: 34% of violent deaths concentrate on only 12 hotspots. If preventive strategies and resources are directed to these places, the impact on Caracas's violence rate could be significant. 

For Caracas's Children

After drawing "The culebras that kill people," Ignacio got together with the rest of his friends and started playing. They jumped, sang, and ran while laughing, and to our eyes, this is the most significant action of resilience that someone can do.

When we asked the children to draw whatever they wanted, they made green landscapes, games, and messages of love. Violence was set aside.

Their capacity to express joy shows that they can promote peace in places that seem to be at war.  

Their situation is indeed painful, but they are the ones who will define the future of their communities, and their potential cannot be overlooked. 

These children can transform Caracas's Hotspots in places of harmony and coexistence.

In this sense, the objective of Caracas Mi Convive is to work directly with the most excluded communities of Caracas, understanding the reality they live, and promoting projects that enhance their capacity to prevent violence. 

The future of children like Ignacio depends on a different approach to the problem, where commitment and leadership allow the development of excluded communities. 

Know more about our work visiting and contacting us through:

@miconvive

Our webpage:

You can also support us donating to our Gofundme:

A peaceful Caracas is in our reach

Caracas Mi Convive

Knowledge Unit Coordinator: 

Santiago Garcia Zubillaga

Space intervention Coordinator

Oriana Medina Yssa

Drawings of "culebras" (snakes), made by children from a community called: Cota 905 in Caracas Venezuela. 

Drawing made by Ignacio about the things he does not like about his community.