The Unrelenting Violence Against Black Youth In Latin America:
The December 2024 murders of four Afro-Ecuadorian boys in Guayaquil’s Las Malvinas neighborhood have laid bare the entrenched racism and neglect faced by Black communities in Ecuador. Ismael and Josué Arroyo, of 15 and 14 years of age, Nehemías Arboleda, 15, and Steven Medina 11, disappeared on December 8th, their dismembered bodies discovered days later near a military base. This heinous act has drawn national and international condemnation, with demands for justice and accountability growing louder.
The government’s response—a state of emergency and curfew in Guayaquil and other areas until at least March 3, 2025—has been criticized for its misplaced focus.