Jose McKain, an educator on the study of history of not only organized crime, but various other topics regarding the history, has felt a deep connection with the topic of organized crime since his childhood. Growing up in a neighborhood that had a presence of organized crime, the eagerness to learn about this lifestyle did not come from just media consumption, but from real-life gangsters and the impact that they had on the community, both good as well as bad. “There were members of organized crime around, and they interested me because of how well that they were so well respected in the community despite being criminals.”(McKain). This fascination led to him earning his master's degree in American History with an emphasis in Organized Crime. …show more content…
The most common demographic of people who are involved in the world of organized crime is primarily people below the poverty line, as well as Italian and Hispanic prominent neighborhoods. This is due to the fact that these individual groups are some of the poorest minorities in the United States. When asked, McKain stated “most criminal behavior, not all but most, organized crime included, is committed by people in impoverished conditions”. The problem of systemic poverty is the main factor in high crime rates. Through acts of crime, these people create a societal movement in order to take themselves as well as potentially others out of poverty in order to change the way that they live, sometimes the only way possible. Becoming people who, while they were once looked down upon by society, are more highly respected and revered when it comes to their status as well as financial standing. In Colorado specifically, the primary factors for the organized crime activity in specific parts of this state, such as North Denver, are due to the conflicts of racial and economic …show more content…
The legalization of gambling only added to the large and growing presence of these activities. Vegas being the post prominent and crime ran hotspot for these activities. Yet organized crime is not to blame for the current culture of ‘illicit’ activities. The media surrounding these racketeering activities is heavily to blame for the glamorization and normalization of illegal activity. While media coverage is used to bring awareness to situations happening globally, nationally, and locally, “It draws attention in the wrong way”(McKain). The media coverage over prominent figures and organized crime rings primarily focuses on the criminal activity happening along with who is or potentially may be causing it, without ever relaying the cause of these issues to the public. “It makes people think more of punishment rather than how to take care of the problem”(McKain) which leads to nothing being solved, and only more misunderstandings happening that continue the problem at its root of systemic poverty. On the other hand, media also tends to overly glamorize the lifestyle and aesthetic of gangsters. The drugs, the money, the power, nightlife and the culture that comes along with
Over the past 60 years there has been a recent phenomenon in the development and rise of gangs and gang violence. This is exceptionally apparent in South Central Los Angeles where the Bloods and the Crips have taken control of the social structure and created a new type of counter culture. Poverty in this area is an enormous problem caused by a shear lack of jobs; but just because there is a lack of jobs doesn’t mean that there will be a lack of bills to pay, so sometimes selling drugs in order to keep a roof over your head seems like the most logical option. Crime often times flourishes in these regions because the inconvenient truth is; crime pays. Senator Tom Hayden stated “It’s been defined as a crime problem and a gang problem but it’s really an issue of no work and dysfunctional schools.” this statement is in fact true, but with an exception it is a more broad issue than just involving school, and lack of jobs but goes beyond into social structure as a whole and more specifically the judicial system, this can all be supported by three sociologists Chambliss, Anderson, and Durkheim.
The gangsters we know and love today are much different from what they were 40 years ago. From the way they talked, dressed, and went about their business, the idea of a gangster has changed a lot. But they have one thing in common and this is the fact that they both had and have a huge impact on our society. One gangster in particular, Henry Hill, contributed to a huge turning point in the methods of American criminals. Henry Hill’s accomplishments as a mobster and an FBI informant helped change the ways of organized crime and how the government tried to stop them.
The decade of the 1920s was full of deception, corruption, and degeneration. The very embodiment of these qualities was the institution of the Italian-American Mafia. The syndicate began in Sicily and spread to encompass United States politics and the national economy. The post war era left the nation in a recession and vulnerable to organized crime. Changes in the country's attitudes and outlooks on the future paved the way for organized crime on a large scale. People were too preoccupied with bootleg booze, sexual promiscuity, and get-rich-quick schemes to notice the downward spiral of the government's respectability and integrity. The decadence of the decade and the feel good mentality of America's youth provided opportunities the industrious underworld leaders sought in order to gain control of the syndicate. The Mafia supplied America with the vices it longed for and in return America let the Mafia get away with murder. Not only did the syndicate accumulate power but also profited financially through prostitution, gambling, and bootlegging. These activities were the foundations of the Outfit's financial and political empires. Mafia power soon began to eclipse the authority of the law enforcement agencies, and the struggle between responsibility and autonomy began.
As more and more immigrants began to spread throughout the US, more and more gangs of people began to emerge. Gangs were usually made up of people of a common ethnicity, whether it be Irish, Italian, or Hispanic. These gangs were usually victims of anti-immigrant policies and looked for strength in numbers. As gangs became more and more sophisticated they realized they could make profits from the power they were accumulating. One of the most recognizable examples is the bootlegging of alcohol during the Prohibition. When federal officials attempted to enforce legislation such as the Volstead Act, there was a surge of illegal sales and profits. In 1927, Al Capone and his gang racked up over $60 million from bootlegged alcohol. With all of this money came tons of violence, people were getting murdered in broad daylight just so others could have a sum of all of this wealth. Soon Mob families would own clubs or casinos to increase their wealth. The attendees weren’t only made up of rich mob bosses, the alcohol, dancing, and gambling attracted many ordinary
South, David. The History of Organized Crime: Secrets of The World’s Most Notorious Gangs. New York: Metro Books, 2013. Print.
Chicago in the 1920’s was known to be a town of relentless parties, alcohol, and violence filled streets. The mastermind pulling the strings was the world’s most notorious gangster, Al Capone, whom utilized the teachings of Frankie Yale and Johnny Torrio to become the most powerful man in the underworld. He was a man of raw brutality and wits, paying off anyone willing to help him grow in power, and kill off anyone who wouldn’t. Al Capone was not like any ordinary criminal, he set out to make the public love him as a person, yet he considered killing to be a part of business. To this day whether or not Capone was a criminal mastermind or robinhood is debatable. What stands firmly is that the Roaring Twenty’s wild demeanor is mainly at fault for shaping Al Capone into who he was, and the construction of the powerful Capone Syndicate, because jobs were scares and organized crime, although dangerous, provided a steady income.
Organized crime has developed a stigma regarding its power and influence, especially during its hay day in the 1930’s. The mob has always been viewed as a powerful “family-like” organization. In Scarface, Hawkes brings the mafia into a seemingly more realistic light. By overturning Lovo’s position of power, Tony represents the idea of “every man for himself,” within a supposed organized group. The viewer steps into a cut-throat world of power hungry men, all trying to get rich quick. In this world, Hawkes asks, how can you organize men towards any goal if they all seek personal gain?
Cardinale, Krysta. "Encyclomedia." Mafia and JFK "America's First Family and the Kings of the Underworld". 17 May 2010 .
(OCAP) "Organized Crime and Prohibition." University at Albany - SUNY. Web. 08 Feb. 2010. .
Gangsters and gangs were first organized during the prohibition of alcohol in 1919. Because of the high demands for alcohol, gangsters like the legendary Al Capone and the well know George Kelly Barnes, illegally smuggled the booze from other countries and/or made what most pe...
During 1869-2014 the Sicilian mafia in America evolved in a number of ways such as: the change in rules, leaders, how it is run, the change in code and power over American society. These topics will be covered throughout this essay and will give you a detailed explanation furthermore the history of the evolution that took place. The Sicilian Mafia started in poor Sicilian ghettos in America and spread into the cities striking fear into the American society. With around 2,500 members it is seen as the most powerful and the most active Italian organized criminal group in the United States of America. The Sicilian mafia is more commonly known as La Cosa Nostra.
Hoover, Marcus. “Where All the Madness Began: A Look Back at Gang History.” Edge. n.p. 1999.
Fear is one of the strongest emotions humans often experience. It influences our thoughts, feelings, and behaviour. Respect and fear are closely linked and have similar effects on others. Some national leaders command respect, while others demand it. Leaders who demand respect are often more powerful and influential, asserting control through fear.
Pace, Denny F. and Jimmie C. Styles. Organized Crime: Concepts and Controls. Englewood Cliffs, N.J., Prentice Hall: 1975.
...ng to fashion, morality, and the prevailing definition of what constitutes illegal and immoral activities. There is even a recognizable gangster “look”, regardless of the era, that depends on an insatiable appetite for flamboyant clothes that marks him as a strutting peacock and a social misfit (Yaquinto xii). The faces of the gangsters have also changed over the years, not just because movie stars shine and fade away, but because the images of real-life criminals have changed. Gangsters have nearly always come from the bottom of society and get their start in the gangs that thrive on America’s meanest streets (Lexis-Nexus). The personnel of gangs has changed over the years to reflect the newest wave of underdogs who stir together anger and unrealized ambition to cook