The Community as a Strategy for Crime Prevention: The Experience of “Soñarte” Socio-Cultural Project

Crime, violence, and the perception of insecurity are complex phenomena conditioned by multiple factors, which favor the probability that in specific sectors, there is greater victimization and a greater concentration of residents of people who commit infractions of criminal law. The new trends in crime prevention are giving priority to its socio-community dimension. The design and actions of socio-cultural projects have a preventive effect by protecting the community from social problems, acting as a containment barrier, and creating a cohesive and constructive scenario against social deterioration. They have an inseparable link with community social prevention, even when it is not the central objective of these projects. This work aims to assess the results achieved in crime prevention by the socio-cultural project “Soñarte,” belonging to the “Las Delicias” community in Cotorro municipality, Havana province. The research is descriptive-analytical and is conducted with a mixed methodological approach. The results suggest that despite the weaknesses in the Project's development, the community has benefited by raising its quality of life from a cultural and socio-criminological approach.