1
Family Ne wo ks and Indoo Cannabis Cul i a ion in a Ma ginalized
Spanish Dis ic
A u o Al a ez-Roldan (aal a ez@ug .es), I án Pa a ([email p o ec ed]), and Juan F. Gamella
([email p o ec ed])
Depa men o Social An h opology, Uni e si y o G anada, Spain
Pape p esen ed a he 36 h Annual Con e ence o he Eu opean Socie y o Social D ug
Resea ch (ESSD), P ague, Czech Republic, 1–3 Oc obe 2025.
In oduc ion
In Spain, cannabis cul i a ion ends o concen a e in neighbo hoods ma ked by po e y and
high unemploymen , whe e social diso ganiza ion makes in ol emen in illegal ac i i ies
mo e likely.
In his p esen a ion, we ocus on one u ban dis ic ha s ands ou o ha ing some o he
highes a es o ma ijuana seizu es pe capi a in he coun y. Wha we ind is ha cannabis
cul i a ion he e is mainly managed by small amily uni s, which a e decen alized in o de o
a oid ha she penal ies. Polynuclea amilies — ha is, ex ended amily households — play
a key ole, gene a ing us , coope a ion, and p o ec ion. Weak policing and he widesp ead
ole ance o elec ici y aud u he enable hese p ac ices o expand. A he same ime,
howe e , he concen a ion o ac i i ies wi hin he dis ic imposes limi s on g ow h and
ex e nal coope a ion.
O e all, ou esea ch shows ha po e y, ma ginaliza ion, and he cen al ole o amily li e
a e c ucial o sus aining cannabis cul i a ion in his con ex .
Objec i e
Ou main goal was o examine which ea u es o u ban a eas make indoo cannabis
cul i a ion possible in Spain, and wha kinds o esou ces hese neighbo hoods p o ide o
cul i a o s and c iminal g oups o es ablish and ope a e.
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17278336
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Me hods
We selec ed a p o ince ha is an ou lie in e ms o cannabis seizu es. Wi hin his p o ince,
we ocused on a single dis ic composed o se en ulne able neighbo hoods, all unde a
special police plan agains cannabis cul i a ion.
Cases like his a e ex eme, bu hey p o ide aluable insigh s and a e well sui ed o
quali a i e explo a ion.
To ga he da a, we combined se e al s a egies. Fi s , we conduc ed in e iews wi h key
in o man s, esiden s, o icials, and local expe s. Second, we analyzed p ess epo s and
police eco ds. And hi d, we e iewed 184 cou ulings on indoo cannabis cul i a ion
issued be ween 2005 and 2020.
Toge he , hese sou ces allowed us o iangula e in o ma ion and en ich ou unde s anding
o he phenomenon. Fo analysis, we elied on desc ip i e and hema ic coding, wi h
in e code ag eemen eached h ough discussion and consensus.
Con ex
The dis ic oday has abou 25,000 inhabi an s, down om 27,500 in 2013. I has long been
ma ked by housing seg ega ion, isola ion, and ma ginaliza ion. Many esiden s a e Roma o
immig an s who we e eloca ed du ing he 1970s h ough social housing p og ams.
The dis ic aces ch onic p oblems: insecu i y, poo heal h and educa ion ou comes, and
unemploymen ha exceeds 60%. Household income is among he lowes in Spain, and
abou hal o he esiden s depend on municipal social assis ance.
Indoo cannabis cul i a ion i s appea ed in he p o ince in 2002, and i expanded apidly
du ing he inancial c isis o 2008. The i s g ows in his dis ic eme ged a ound 2008–
2009, o en wi h ad ice om ac o s in he legal cannabis indus y.
By 2024, au ho i ies had seized mo e han 229,000 plan s and o e 2,500 kilog ams o
ma ijuana in his p o ince. This accoun s o mo e han 21% o all na ional seizu es, e en
hough he p o ince ep esen s less han 2% o Spain’s popula ion.
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Kinship as O ganiza ional S uc u e
Families a e a he co e o cannabis cul i a ion.
Nuclea amilies a e he mos common. In o e hal o cou cases, g ows we e owned by a
single indi idual, bu mos in ol ed some o m o amily collabo a ion. Couples we e
pa icula ly equen , bu we also ound cases in ol ing pa en s and child en, cousins, o
siblings. Women some imes ac ed as sole owne s o ook o e managemen when husbands
we e imp isoned. Mos households cul i a ed in hei own homes. Many had li le o no
c iminal eco d, and hey we e o en mo i a ed by po e y and he need o ex a income.
Beyond hese, he dis ic also con ains polynuclea amilies — ex ended households wi h
se e al nuclea amilies unde he same oo o in he same complex. These a angemen s
o en esul in mul iple, semi-independen cul i a ion ope a ions unde he same kin
ne wo k.
Some o hese amilies ha e managed o occupy en i e s ee s o building complexes,
c ea ing s ong zones o p o ec ion.
One example is “Risk Alley”, whe e mo e han 150
ela i es li e, 20 o whom a e in ol ed in cannabis cul i a ion.
Repu a ion plays a c ucial
ole he e: i de e s denuncia ions, iolen dispu es, and ex e nal h ea s, bu a he same
ime i c ea es obliga ions o solida i y and ecip oci y wi hin he g oup. Women equen ly
ake on inancial esponsibili ies, and in some cases lead ope a ions when men a e absen .
Finally, we also obse ed you h coali ions. Younge people o en pa icipa e in he s,
obbe ies, o in s ealing cannabis c ops om o he g oups — wha locals call “ uelcos.” Fo
many, cul i a ion is a i s s ep in gaining expe ience and building epu a ion. Imp isonmen ,
in some cases, e en ac s as a i e o passage, al hough some lea e c ime behind when hey
s a hei own amilies.
Communi y Resou ces
The en i onmen o he dis ic i sel p o ides key esou ces o cul i a ion.
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Housing in as uc u e is cen al. The dis ic has o e 1,100 social housing uni s, many
poo ly moni o ed. Cul i a o s o en ope a e in legally assigned homes, bu also squa o
pu chase in o mally a e y low cos . Some c iminal g oups e en con ol en i e buildings
dedica ed o cul i a ion. Wi h such low housing p ices — some imes be ween only €4,000
and €20,000 — in es men s can be ecouped in less han a yea .
Elec ici y in as uc u e is ano he ac o . A ound 60% o homes lack legal con ac s. Illegal
connec ions a e widesp ead, causing cons an blackou s ha mos ly a ec ulne able
esiden s. This has spa ked p o es s, bu also led c iminal ac o s o in ol e esiden s in
elec ici y aud, c ea ing complici y.
The social pe cep ion o cannabis also ma e s. Compa ed o he oin o cocaine, ma ijuana is
seen as ela i ely ha mless. This ole ance lowe s sec ecy equi emen s and has e en
displaced o he d ug ma ke s in he dis ic .
We also obse ed g owing p o essionaliza ion and coope a ion. As ope a ions expand, hey
ely on elec icians, ca e ake s, and immig an c ews o imming and was e disposal. In
ac , 20% o seized plan a ions employed dedica ed ca e ake s. G ow shops and seed banks
p o ide equipmen and ad ice, and in some cases ac as in e media ies in sales.
Finally, inancing and se ices sus ain he sys em. En y in o he business equi es ela i ely
low in es men , o en inanced h ough local moneylende s who cha ge usu ious in e es
a es. This can c ea e dependency and subo dina ion o mo e o ganized c iminal g oups.
G ow shops and seed banks also p o ide equipmen , ad ice, and some imes ac as
in e media ies o sales.
Ma ke Dynamics
The ma ijuana ma ke in he dis ic is highly compe i i e. G oups canno ix p ices, which
emain among he lowes in Spain. Con lic s o e clien s o p ice unde cu ing o en escala e
in o iolence. I onically, hese iolen dispu es end up ac ing as an in o mal o m o ma ke
egula ion.
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Conclusions
To conclude, cannabis cul i a ion in his dis ic is no jus a c iminal ac i i y. I is embedded
in b oade p ocesses o po e y, exclusion, and su i al.
Families — bo h nuclea and ex ended — a e he backbone o o ganiza ion. They p o ide
us , p o ec ion, and esilience in a hos ile en i onmen .
Limi ed law en o cemen capaci y, ole ance o elec ici y aud, and he no maliza ion o
ma ijuana c ea e e ile g ound o hese p ac ices. Ye , he dis ic ’s isola ion and i s
epu a ion also impose limi s on g ow h, while a he same ime shielding illegal ac o s.
In sum, cannabis cul i a ion he e is bes unde s ood as pa o he in o mal economy o
ma ginalized u ban a eas — an economy sus ained by necessi y, kinship, and communi y
esou ces.
1
Family Ne wo ks and Indoo Cannabis Cul i a ion in a
Ma ginalized Spanish Dis ic
A u o Al a ez-Roldan
I án Pa a To o
Juan F. Gamella
36 h Annual Con e ence o he
Eu opean Socie y o Social D ug Resea ch
1s – 3 d Oc obe 2025, P ague, Czech Republic
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INTRODUCTION
•Cannabis cul i a ion in Spain concen a es in poo , high-
unemploymen neighbo hoods
•This s udy examines one dis ic wi h he highes pe
capi a ma ijuana seizu es
•Cul i a ion is decen alized and amily-based;
polynuclea amilies p o ide us , coope a ion, and
p o ec ion
•Weak policing and ole a ed elec ici y aud enable
expansion
•Po e y, ma ginaliza ion, and amily s uc u es sus ain
he local cannabis economy
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STUDY OBJECTIVE
The aim was o examine which ea u es o u ban
a eas acili a e indoo cannabis cul i a ion in
Spain, and wha esou ces hese neighbo hoods
p o ide o cul i a o s and c iminal g oups o
es ablish and ope a e.
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METHODS
•Quali a i e case s udy o one dis ic (7 neighbo hoods)
•Sequen ial concep -d i en sampling
•30+ in e iews + p ess & police epo s
•Analysis o 184 cou ulings (2005-2020)
•Thema ic coding & analysis
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COMMUNITY RESOURCES
Elec ici y In aes uc u e
•60% o homes lack legal
con ac s
•Illegal connec ions →
cons an blackou s, ha ming
esiden s
•Blackou s igge p o es s
and esen men
•C iminal g oups in ol e
esiden s in elec ici y aud
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COMMUNITY RESOURCES
Social Pe cep ion o D ugs
• Cannabis seen as less ha m ul han he oin/cocaine
• No maliza ion educes s igma & sec ecy
• Displacemen o o he local d ug ma ke s
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COMMUNITY RESOURCES
Coope a ion & P o essionaliza ion
•Expanding g ows need
elec icians, ca e ake s,
immig an c ews.
•Was e disposal and
imming ou sou ced.
•20% o seized plan a ions
had dedica ed ca e ake s.
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COMMUNITY RESOURCES
Financing & Se ices
•Low en y in es men , o en
ia local moneylende s.
•Usu ious loans leads o
subo dina ion o mo e
o ganized c iminal g oups.
•G ow shops & seed banks
supply equipmen , ad ice,
and ac as in e media ies.
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MARKET DYNAMICS
•Highly compe i i e ma ke
•P ices among he lowes in Spain
•No p ice- ixing possible
•Violence ac s as in o mal egula ion
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CONCLUSIONS
•Cannabis cul i a ion is oo ed in po e y, exclusion, and su i al
s a egies
•Families (nuclea & ex ended) p o ide us , p o ec ion, and
esilience
•Weak law en o cemen , elec ici y aud ole ance, and
ma ijuana’s no maliza ion sus ain he p ac ice
•Dis ic isola ion and epu a ion bo h cons ain g ow h and
shield ac o s
•O e all: cul i a ion is pa o he in o mal economy in
ma ginalized u ban a eas
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Thanks o you a en ion
aal a ez@ug .es
@al old
Depa men o Social An h opology
Uni e si y o G anada, Spain
