The Dope - The Real History of the Mexican Drug War (2021)

A myth-busting, 100-year history of the Mexican drug trade that reveals how a once-peaceful industry became a violent behemoth.

The Mexican drug trade has inspired prejudiced narratives of a war between north and south, white and brown, between noble cops and vicious kingpins, corrupt politicians and powerful cartels. In The Dope, Benjamin T. Smith draws on unprecedented archival research; leaked DEA, Mexican law enforcement, and cartel documents; and dozens of harrowing interviews to tell the real story of how and why this one-peaceful industry turned violent, interrogate the US-backed policies that inflamed the carnage, and explore corruption on both sides of the border.

Vivid characters—from Ignacia "La Nacha" Jasso, "queen-pin" of Juarez, to Harry Anslinger, founder of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics—propel this thrilling history, which reveals the human cost of the trade. A dark morality tale about the American hunger for...