From Sicily to New York: A brief history of the Mafia
Learn how the Mafia formed in the 19th century and how it spread from Sicily to New York City and beyond.
Image: Sicilian Mafia boss Vito Cascio Ferro with his son | GRANGER - Historical Picture Archive / Alamy Stock Photo | Background: A modern Sicilian road sign is covered in bullet holes | Shutterstock.com
Ross Kemp goes on a global journey to follow a trail of illegal money and drugs along an intricate path where history meets globalisation to reveal the true reality of Britain’s historical relationship with the Mafia. Ross Kemp: Mafia and Britain starts Tuesday, 10th September at 9pm on Sky HISTORY.
The Mafia has become a well-known and notorious feature of history, especially in the US. But how did this criminal organisation begin? Here, we explore the origins of the Mafia, a story which starts in 19th century Sicily, a Mediterranean island located at the southern ‘toe’ of Italy’s boot.
The origins of the Mafia
In the early 1860s, Sicily became an autonomous region of Italy. However, prior to that, it had endured several foreign invaders. During this time, the term ‘mafioso’ emerged. Translating to ‘swagger’ or ‘bravado’, the word had no criminal connotation. It simply referred to Sicilians who were dubious of the authorities.
In the mid-19th century, Sicily had a power vacuum as the Italian regime started to establish itself on the island. It led to the rise of private armies. Known as ‘mafie’, after the caves in which they hid, these armies were an early form of organised crime gangs, extorting protection money from landowners.
As the Italian government tried to gain control of the island, it even turned to the mafie to help quell other forms of crime, looking the other way to the organised extortion.
The mafie assumed the familiar Mafia characteristics of a hierarchical structure, influence over the authorities, and a unique set of rules and behaviour. Over time, the term ‘Cosa Nostra’ (‘our thing’) evolved to refer to the Sicilian Mafia.
In 1863, the concept of the Mafia entered mainstream culture in the popular touring play, I Mafiusi della Vicaria (The Mafiosi of the Vicaria).
It is important to mention that organised criminal gangs also formed in mainland Italy. The most notable groups included the Camorra of Naples, Ndrangheta of Calabria and the Sacra Corona Unita of Puglia.
The 1920s saw Benito Mussolini become Italy’s prime minister. This resulted in a violent clampdown on Mafia activity in the country. But by this time, the Mafia had already reached the New World.
Italian immigration to New York
The late 19th and early 20th centuries brought a wave of immigration from Italy to the United States.
Some members of the Sicilian Mafia fled their homeland, while migrants often ended up in overcrowded conditions and were forced into low-paying work. As a result, some turned to street gangs and formed crime syndicates.
This all led to the formation of a scattered crime establishment, the American Mafia, colloquially known as the Mob. As well as New York, the Mob spread to cities like Chicago, Los Angeles and New Orleans.
Key figures in the early days of the American Mafia included Giuseppe Esposito, Salvatore Maranzano, Giuseppe Masseria, Carlo Gambino and Charles ‘Lucky’ Luciano.
Prohibition and the Golden Age of the Mafia
The 18th Amendment to the US Constitution took effect in 1920. It introduced Prohibition, an event which essentially led to ‘organised crime’ in America, as the Mob seized upon the opportunity to fill a huge demand for alcohol. This was the time of such figures as Frank Costello, Meyer Lansky and – of course – Al Capone.
A second defining event was the Castellammarese War of the early-1930s. This violent dispute between New York’s Castellammarese and Masseria organised crime families led to the emergence of the Five Families.
These separate gangs would go on to dominate organised criminal activity in the city for decades, including the Mafia’s Golden Age in the 1940s and 1950s.
It was during this period that the Mob spread to Havana in Cuba and became instrumental in the emergence of Las Vegas, taking advantage of the lucrative gambling and entertainment opportunities both cities offered.
The Mafia’s influence would extend to the powerful labour unions, politicians and the construction industry. However, the passing of the US Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act of 1970 allowed law enforcement to crack down on the Mob’s criminal activities.
Meanwhile, the end of World War II saw a rise in construction in Sicily. This led to a resurgence of the Mafia on the island, which by the 1970s had expanded into drug trafficking.
The Mafia today
Organised crime gangs still operate globally. In Italy, the Sicilian Mafia, Camorras, Ndranghetas and Sacra Corona Unitas remain engaged in widespread criminal activity.
In the US, New York’s Five Families, particularly the Genovese family, as well as the Chicago Outfit are active. Organised crime also occurs in such regions and cities as New England, Philadelphia, Chicago, and Detroit.
Mafia activity is now more focused on drugs and white-collar crime. Though rare, there are still cases of extortion, highlighting that these criminal organisations have not completely moved away from their Sicilian origins.
