The Locust Effect: Why the End of Poverty Requires the End of Violence [Paperback]

The first book to focus on the central role of violence in perpetuating poverty, aruging that if people aren't safe, nothing else matters. Featuring real-world stories ranging from Thailand to Bolivia to India to Nigeria that vividly depict how violence undercuts antipoverty efforts, authors Haugen and Boutros draw from their experience running the International Justice Mission to show that ground-up efforts to reform legal and public justice systems can generate real, positive results.AWashington PostbestsellerWhile the world has made encouraging strides in the fight against global poverty, the hidden plague of everyday violence silently undermines our best efforts to help the poor. Common violence like rape, forced labor, illegal detention, land theft, and police abuse has become routine and relentless. And like a horde of locusts devouring everything in its path, the unchecked plague of violence ruins lives, blocks the road out of poverty, and undercuts development. How has this plague of violence grown so ferocious? In one of the most remarkable social disasters of the last half century, basic public justice systems in the developing world have descended into a state of utter collapse, and there's nothing shielding the poor from violent people.Gary A. Haugen and Victor Boutros offer a searing account of how we got here and what it will take to end the plague. The Locust Effect is a gripping journey into the streets and slums where fear is a daily reality for billions of the world'spoorest, where safety is secured only for those with money, and where much of our well-intended aid is lost in the daily chaos of violence. While their call to action is urgent, Haugen and Boutros provide hope, a real solution and an ambitious way forward. The Locust Effect will forever change the way we understand global poverty,and will help secure a safe path to prosperity for the global poor in the 21st century.IntroductionChapter 1: What Are We Missing?Chapter 2: The Hiddló×