Challenging the Mafia Mystique

Challenging the Mafia Mystique
Author: Rino Coluccello
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 271
Release: 2016-04-29
Genre: Literary Criticism
ISBN: 1137280506

The Sicilian Mafia, or Cosa Nostra, is one of the most intriguing criminal phenomena in the world. It is an unparalleled organised criminal grouping that over almost two centuries has been able not only to successfully permeate licit and illicit economy, politics and civil society, but also to influence and exercise authoritative power over both the underworld and the upper-world. This criminal phenomenon has been a captivating conundrum for scholars of different disciplines who have tried to explain with various paradigms the reasons behind the emergence and consolidation of the mafia. Challenging the Mafia Mystique provides an analysis of the changes the Sicilian mafia has undergone, from legitimisation to denunciation. Rino Coluccello highlights how, from the very emergence of the organised criminal groups in Sicily, a culture existed that was protective and tolerant of the mafia. He argues that the various conceptualisations of the mafia that dominated the public and scientific debate in the nineteenth and more than half of the twentieth century created a mystique, which legitimised the mafia and contributed to their success. This book will be of great interest to scholars and students of organised crime, Italian politics and Italian literature.

Deconstructing Organized Crime

Deconstructing Organized Crime
Author: Joseph L. Albini
Publisher: McFarland
Total Pages: 219
Release: 2012-09-25
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0786465808

What is organized crime? There have been many answers over the decades from scholars, governments, the media, pop culture and criminals themselves. These answers cumulatively created a "Mafia Mystique" that dominated discourse until after the Cold War, when transnational organized crime emerged as a pronounced, if nebulous, threat to global security and stability. The authors focus both on the American experience that dominated organized crime scholarship in the second half of the 20th century and on the more recent global scene. Case studies show that organized crime is best understood not as a series of famous gangsters and events but as a structure of everyday life formed by numerous political, social, economic and anthropological variables. Instructors considering this book for use in a course may request an examination copy here.

The Mafia Mystique

The Mafia Mystique
Author: Dwight C. Smith
Publisher:
Total Pages: 424
Release: 1975
Genre: Mafia
ISBN:

This text examines the imagery linked to the term "mafia". The author aims to break down the mystique surrounding the word, attributing its buildup to sensational reporting, hidden agendas and the public's fascination with the idea of a secret criminal society. In tracing this mystique through history, the author determines how much of that image comes from actual events.

Organized Crime in Our Times

Organized Crime in Our Times
Author: Jay S. Albanese
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 437
Release: 2014-09-25
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1317522060

Organized Crime in Our Times provides readers with a clear understanding of organized crime, including its definition and causes, how it is categorized under the law, models to explain its persistence, and the criminal justice response to organized crime, including investigation, prosecution, defense, and sentencing. This book offers a comprehensive survey, including an extensive history of the Mafia in the United States; a legal analysis of the offenses that underlie organized crimes; specific attention to modern manifestations of organized crime activity, such as human smuggling, Internet crimes, and other transnational criminal operations; and the application of ethics to the study of organized crime.

Organized Crime

Organized Crime
Author: Jay S. Albanese
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 413
Release: 2014-11-20
Genre: Law
ISBN: 1317522109

Organized Crime: From the Mob to Transnational Organized Crime, Seventh Edition, provides readers with a clear understanding of organized crime, including its definition and causes, how it is categorized under the law, models to explain its persistence, and the criminal justice response to organized crime, including investigation, prosecution, defense, and sentencing. This book offers a comprehensive survey, including an extensive history of the Mafia in the United States; a legal analysis of the offenses that underlie organized crimes; specific attention to modern manifestations of organized crime activity, such as human smuggling, Internet crimes, and other transnational criminal operations; and the application of ethics to the study of organized crime. A new section has been added on threat assessment in organized crime. Chapters are enhanced by updated photos, tables, charts, and critical thinking exercises that help students apply concepts to actual organized crime cases. Every chapter includes two student-friendly special features: Organized Crime Biography and Organized Crime at the Movies. A glossary gives students a quick reference for looking up important definitions of organized crime-related terms, and a Timeline of Organized Crime in the United States highlights important events in the history of organized crime.

Deep Politics and the Death of JFK

Deep Politics and the Death of JFK
Author: Peter Dale Scott
Publisher: Univ of California Press
Total Pages: 442
Release: 1993
Genre: History
ISBN: 0520205197

Meticulously documented investigation uncovering the political secrets surrounding John F. Kennedy's assassination.

Organized Crime and American Power

Organized Crime and American Power
Author: Michael Woodiwiss
Publisher: University of Toronto Press
Total Pages: 393
Release: 2024-06-03
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1487543433

Popular histories of organized crime in the United States often look to the Mafia and the sons of early twentieth-century immigrants – such as Al Capone, Lucky Luciano, and Meyer Lansky – for their origins. In this second edition of Organized Crime and American Power, Michael Woodiwiss refocuses on US organized crime as an American problem. The book starts in 1789, with the birth of a new nation, intended to be run according to laws and conventions, with a written commitment to civil rights. Woodiwiss examines the organization of crime before the Civil War, which damaged or destroyed the lives of those excluded from constitutional protections: Indigenous peoples, Black people, and women. The book focuses on white supremacist crime and the pernicious influence of Southern leaders in alliance with opportunistic politicians. It examines the organized crimes of powerful business interests in alliance with politicians, as well as the corrupt consequences of the US moralistic campaigns against alcohol, gambling, drugs, and abortion. Organized Crime and American Power brings solid historical evidence and analysis to the task of refuting conventional wisdom that frames organized crime as something external to US political, economic, and social systems.

Doing Research on Crime and Justice

Doing Research on Crime and Justice
Author: Roy King
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 557
Release: 2008
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 0199287627

Focusing on the problems that novice researchers encounter when translating neat and tidy textbook methodologies into real life situations, this guide explains how to undertake research in the fields of criminology and criminal justice.

Russian Mafia in America

Russian Mafia in America
Author: James O. Finckenauer
Publisher: UPNE
Total Pages: 330
Release: 1998
Genre: Law
ISBN: 9781555533748

An examination of Russian organized crime at home and in the U.S.

Combating Transnational Crime

Combating Transnational Crime
Author: Dimitri Vlassis
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 393
Release: 2013-03-07
Genre: History
ISBN: 1136337849

This work examines the challenges posed by transnational crime and the steps being taken by the international community to meet these challenges. It offers comprehensive analysis of different forms of transnational crime and the various responses that are being developed.