Mafia

Mafia, what is the Mafia? The Mafia is an "Organized Crime Crew," doing both legit and illegal business all over the world. It's a very powerful organization consisting of many groups. In this paper you will learn the origins of the Mafia, the kind of business they do, and some of the most famous leaders ever to come about.

Nobody knows for sure how the Mafia started. One thought is from a secret society that opposed the "French Angevins," which was another group that tried to Sicily. The cry of the rebellious Italian group went like so, "Morte All Francia Italia Anelia," which is Italian for, " Death to the French is Italy's cry." If you put the first letters of the phrase, it spells out "Mafia." The second thought to be the origin of the Mafia is from a group of men who were hired by landlords, to protect their land while they were gone. Whatever the origin is, it doesn't matter, the Mafia is a real organization that still lives.

Born in Sicily, the Mafia has spread through out the whole world! Its an organization consisting of different "groups." These groups consist of different ranked people. Boss, Underboss, Consigliere, Caporegima, Soldiers, and Associates. These groups were all united by something called "omerta." An ethical code they had to go by and not brake any rules from it, or otherwise some strong consequences would have to be paid.

In the 1920's the Mafia was being pressured by the Italian government, who's leader at the time was Mussolini. Mussolini tried to control the Mafia, and for that reason, the Mafia fled to the United States. That's when the real business started. During the Prohibition in the United States, the Mafia used all of its political and killing power to smuggle illegal substances in from other countries into the United States. With this, they mad big money. They abused the power they had built to use in protection of their families, and instead used it to do their illegal activities with "dirty money." The Mafia's power was so strong they controlled the government, and the police. Basically said, the Mafia could do whatever they felt like doing, without being convicted of a crime.

Every Mafia member that fled to the U.S., from Sicily and Italy knew there was money to be made in the States. The Mafia groups that spread through the nation formed businesses of extortion, prostitution, gambling, and bootlegging. The period in the States established the "New Age American Mafia," which originated from the famous Five Pointers Gang, where many of the strongest Mafia members came from.

The strongest at the time were Charles Luciano, Myer Lansky, Benjamin Siegal, and Alphonse Capone. Trained in the Five Points Gang, Charles Luciano, famously known as Lucky Luciano was the founder of the national crime syndicate in the 1930's. Luciano started his own prostitution racket 1920 and by 1925 he had control over most of Manhattan's prostitution. In 1927, at the age of 30, Luciano had made himself a millionaire. In 1929, an attempt to take his life was made. He miraculously survived the brutal attack, which caused him to make a big move. He gathered all his power, and eliminated all opposing "bosses." By 1935, Lucky Luciano was considered