What a moralizing and condescending article. Uninformed; conceptually and historically inaccurate; and lacking in critical rigorousness. If anything, Nick Brow’s comment (disguising a white savior complex) actively erases critical issues regarding our history and the necessity we have as Colombians (and the ones you have as Americans)to confront our history. “Stop watching Narcos?” Please stop telling us what we should or should not do. Instead of abstaining, people should be out there learning how to read these texts, how to critically engage with them, asking themselves what is causing them to flourish (both here in the US and in Colombia). You immediately assume that all spectators watching Narcos are a passive and dumb. Look, that your friends are racist idiots is not Narcos fault, just as gun violence is not Quentin Tarantino’s or Call of Duty’s.

Also, Pablo Escobar is not like Osama Bin Laden. This is perhaps the most inaccurate comparison ever, and of course symptomatic of your condescending stance. Pablo Escobar is not an external monstruos “Other” that suddenly started bombing us because how “free” and “catholic” we were (I’m assuming this is the mediocre narrative you’re attributing to Bin Laden). Pablo Escobar was the consequence of a much larger issue and to dismiss what he represented during the 80’s and 90’s is to immediately dismiss the very same factors that created him (political instability, neoliberalism, precariousness, popular discontent — don’t forget Pablo Escobar represented welfare for millions of people).

Instead of going around over stating common places about my country, I invite you to really reflect on the complexity of the political situation in Colombia. To really grasp the necessity we have to be confronted with our history EVEN if it comes from a show on Netfix. But, above all, I invite you to reflect of your own biases and your privilege. Is no secret that narco-traffic is pretty much USA’s fault: and trust me, it has nothing, NOTHING, to do with a tv show.