Mafia

The Mafia, also referred to in Italian as La Cosa Nostra (variously translated as This Thing Of Ours or Our Thing), is the name for a secret, criminal organisation which evolved in mid 19th century Sicily, and led to an offshoot on the East-Coast of the United States emerging during the late 19th century with the waves of Italian immigration to that country.

Mafia in the United States

Mafia groups in the United States first became influential in the New York City area, gradually progressing from small neighborhood operations to citywide and eventually international organizations.

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Five families dominated, named for prominent early members - the Bonanno family, the Colombo crime family, the Gambino family, the Genovese family, and the Lucchese family.

Related Topics:
Bonanno family - Colombo crime family - Gambino family - Genovese family - Lucchese family

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Each family was ultimately controlled by a Don, who was insulated from actual operations by several layers of authority. According to popular belief, the Don's closest and most trusted advisor was referred to as the consigliere ("counselor" in Italian). In reality, the consigliere was meant to be something of a "hearing officer" who was charged with mediating intra-family disputes. An underboss was possible as well. There were then a number of regimes with a varying number of soldiers who conducted actual operations.

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Each regime was headed by a caporegime, who reported to the boss. When the boss made a decision, he never issued orders directly to the soldiers who would carry it out, but instead passed instructions down through the chain of command. In this way, the higher levels of the organization were effectively insulated from incrimination if a lower level member should be captured by law enforcement. This structure is immortalised in Mario Puzo's famous novel The Godfather.

Related Topics:
Mario Puzo - The Godfather

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The Initiation ritual emerged in Sicily in the mid-19th century and has hardly changed to this day. The Chief of Police of Palermo in 1875 reported that the man of honour to be initiated would be led into the presence of a group of bosses and underbosses. One of these men would prick the intiate's arm or hand and tell him to smear the blood onto a sacred image, usually a saint. The oath of loyalty would be taken as the image was burned and scattered, thus symbolising the annihilation of traitors.

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A hit, or assassination, of a made man had to be preapproved by the leadership of his family, or retaliatory hits would be made, possibly inciting a war. In a state of war, families would go to the mattresses - rent vacant apartments and have a number of soldiers sleeping on mattresses on the floor in shifts, with the others ready at the windows to fire at members of rival families.

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The American Mafia eventually became more accommodating of non-Sicilian Italians among the sworn-in membership of 'made-men' and forged closer associations with gangsters of other nationalities, thus becoming distinct from the original organisation in Sicily.

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