ITALIAN MOB

Italian Mob

Italian Mob

Introduction

The Mafia is a secret crime group working in many parts of the world that was created in Italy more than 200 years ago. The mafia makes money from crime. They make billions of dollars a year from such crimes as making and selling illegal drugs, money laundering, from stealing, gambling and prostitution. Secret society reputed to control organized crime such as gambling, loan sharking, drug traffic, prostitution, and protection; connected with the Camorra of Naples. It originated in Sicily in the late Middle Ages and now operates chiefly there and in countries to which Italians have emigrated, such as the USA and Australia. During the early 1990s many centre and right-wing Italian politicians, such as the former Christian Democrat prime minister Giulio Andreotti, became discredited when it emerged that they had had dealings with the Mafia.

Discussion

It began as a society that avenged wrongs against Sicilian peasants by means of terror and vendetta. In 19th-century Sicily the Mafia was employed by absentee landlords to manage their latifundia (landed estates), and through intimidation it soon became the unofficial ruling group. Despite the expropriation and division of the latifundia after World War II, the Mafia remains powerful in Sicily. The Italian government has waged periodic campaigns of suppression, notably 1927, when the Fascist leader Mussolini appointed Cesare Mori as prefect of Palermo. Mori's methods were, however, as suspect as those of the people he was arresting, and he was fired 1929. A further campaign was waged 1963-64. The Calabrian mafia (known as the 'Ndrangeta) and the Camorra allegedly worked together in attempting to assassinate lawyers investigating the Mafia 1993-94. It was calculated 1992 that the Mafia was Italy's biggest business, earning one out of every eight lire and accounting for 12% of national product.

The Italian-American mafia began at the time when many Italians moved to the United States in the 1800s. The first Italian mafia was in New Orleans in Louisiana but soon they were in many cities across the country. The Italian mafia in the United States is actually called La Cosa Nostra which in Italian language means "This thing of ours" or "Our thing". The American mafia is divided into different groups or "families".( William, 1914)

Many large cities have one Italian-American mafia family but some larger cities like New York City have more. New York City has five Italian mafia families. They are called;

The Bonanno crime family

The Colombo crime family

The Gambino crime family

The Genovese crime family

The Lucchese crime family

Some other cities that have Italian mafia families are; Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Detroit, Chicago and many more.

The Mafia grew during Prohibition in the USA. Main centres are New York, Las Vegas, Miami, Atlantic City, and Chicago. Organization is in 'families', each with its own boss, or capo. A code of loyalty and secrecy, combined with intimidation of witnesses, makes it difficult to bring criminal charges against its members. However, Al Capone was sentenced for federal tax evasion and Lucky Luciano was ...