Part of what's going on in Mexico is that the cartels have spread romanticized images of themselves to the point where many Mexican youngsters actually aspire to cartel life. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narcocorrido
Indeed when El Chapo was arrested there were loads of memes going viral about how good he was to the poor. I do believe this is somewhat factual (not El Chapo but drug lords in general) but they tend to be equally or even more cruel to those who don’t bow to their whims.
For some young people their only role models are terrible people who take advantage of their trust and get them into this life. It's a big issue in the U.S. too.
They are setting up legitimate business, and hiring whole towns.
I can see why certain people turn their heads.
There's part of me that went numb to other countries problems. America needs to help itself. I'm seeing more desperate, disenfranchised Americans than ever.