'Our thing' or ' derived from Italian. Although it does not symbolize any 'Mafia' because such an organization never existed. With the mass immigration of Southern Europeans during 1917, a large portion of the nationality groups included Italians. Many of these men wished to leave behind a life of hopeless dreams and poverty so they seized of opportunity becoming involved in what many Americans like to call, 'organized crime.'

• Cosa Nostra Rules

Such men included Joe and Maranzano, the 'Moustache Petes.' For over 70 plus years, these men would prove to reign very prosperously. Some men such as the brilliant Carlo, led their families or 'crews' towards harmless business ventures.

Ventures including gambling, protection, and various legal businesses. Others became involved with lucrative, yet immoral and dangerous businesses such as narcotics distribution and business extortion. However, to regard these people as the 'Mafia' is an act of discrimination because the word itself holds such infamous representations. It has the same effect of calling a black man a nigger. These men are not criminals, but smart individuals that held the common sense to give up a never-ending life of scrubbing toilets and assembly lines, making a couple of cents within a whole day's work. These men aren't criminals. The police will murder to the law.

These men kill to uphold their own laws. They're only on opposite sides of the fence. Then again, the government and laws claim it is wrong. If you think about it, the government is composed of men and women just like you and me. Just because the government states what is right and wrong doesn't.

They don't necessarily own, but every individual living here owns this land. There have been many people who supposedly owned N. America throughout the past, and if there were to be definitive owners, they would be the first. The government only exists to maintain the safety of people. In reality, no man has more power over another man.

Several terms redirect here. For other uses, see. For the Czech secret political organisation, see. For the French TV series, see Sicilian Mafia Founding locationYears activesince 19th centuryTerritoryininand ininEthnicityare, mostlyCriminal activities,Alliesand formerly theRivalsVarious and clans The Sicilian Mafia, also known as simply the Mafia and frequently referred to by its own members as Cosa Nostra ( Italian:, Sicilian:; 'our thing'), is a -type originating in,. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organisational structure. The basic group is known as a 'family', 'clan',. Each family claims over a territory, usually a town or village or a neighbourhood ( borgata) of a larger city, in which it operates its.

Its members call themselves ', although the public often refers to them as mafiosi. The Mafia's core activities are, the arbitration of disputes between criminals, and the organizing and oversight of illegal agreements and transactions.Following waves of emigration, the Mafia has spread to other countries such as Canada and the United States. —, 1990According to Mafia turncoats ( ), the real name of the Mafia is 'Cosa Nostra' ('Our Thing').

Mafioso testified before the of the in 1963 (known as the ). He revealed that American mafiosi referred to their organization by the term cosa nostra ('our thing' or 'this thing of ours' or simply 'our cause' / 'our interest'). At the time, it was understood as a proper name, fostered by the and disseminated by the media. The FBI added the article la to the term, calling it La Cosa Nostra (in Italy, the article la is not used when referring to Cosa Nostra).In 1984, Mafia turncoat revealed to anti-mafia magistrate that the term was used by the Sicilian Mafia, as well. Buscetta dismissed the word 'mafia' as a mere literary creation. Other defectors such as and confirmed the use of Cosa Nostra by members.

Mafiosi introduce known members to each other as belonging to cosa nostra ('our thing') or la stessa cosa ('the same thing'), meaning 'he is the same thing as you — a mafioso.' The Sicilian Mafia has used other names to describe itself throughout its history, such as 'The Honoured Society'. Mafiosi are known among themselves as 'men of honour' or 'men of respect'.Cosa Nostra should not be confused with other mafia-type organisations in Southern Italy, such as the in, the in, or the in.Definitions It is difficult to exactly define the single function or goal of the phenomenon of the Mafia. Until the early 1980s, mafia was generally considered a unique cultural attitude and form of power, excluding any corporate or organisational dimension. Some even used it as a defensive attempt to render the Mafia benign and romantic — not a criminal association, but the sum of Sicilian values that outsiders will never understand.was an Italian deputy who travelled to Sicily and who wrote one of the first authoritative reports on the mafia in 1876. He saw the Mafia as an 'industry of violence' and described the designation of the term 'mafia'.the term mafia found a class of violent criminals ready and waiting for a name to define them, and, given their special character and importance in Sicilian society, they had the right to a different name from that defining vulgar criminals in other countries.

—, 1876Franchetti saw the Mafia as deeply rooted in Sicilian society and impossible to quench unless the very structure of the island's social institutions were to undergo a fundamental change.Some observers saw 'mafia' as a set of attributes deeply rooted in popular culture, as a 'way of being', as illustrated in the definition by Sicilian ethnographer:Mafia is the consciousness of one's own worth, the exaggerated concept of individual force as the sole arbiter of every conflict, of every clash of interests or ideas. —, 1889Other scholars such as say.with the word Mafia, the Sicilians intend to express two things, two social phenomena, that can be analyzed in separate ways even though they are closely related.The Mafia, or rather the essence of the Mafia, is a way of thinking that requires a certain line of conduct such as maintaining one's pride or even bullying in a given situation.

On the other hand, the same word in Sicily can also indicate, not a special organization, but the combination of many small organizations, that pursue various goals, in the course of which its members almost always do things which are basically illegal and sometimes even criminal. Main article:In 1925, initiated a campaign to destroy the Mafia and assert Fascist control over Sicilian life. The Mafia threatened and undermined his power in Sicily, and a successful campaign would strengthen him as the new leader, legitimizing and empowering his rule. This would be a great propaganda coup for, and it would also provide an excuse to suppress his political opponents on the island, since many Sicilian politicians had Mafia links.As prime minister, he visited Sicily in May 1924 and passed through where he was received by mayor/Mafia boss. At some point, Cuccia expressed surprise at Mussolini's police escort and whispered in his ear: 'You are with me, you are under my protection. What do you need all these cops for?'

Mussolini rejected Cuccia's offer of protection, and the sindaco felt that he had been slighted and instructed the townsfolk not to attend the 's speech. Mussolini felt humiliated and outraged.Cuccia's careless remark has passed into history as the catalyst for Mussolini's war on the Mafia. Mussolini firmly established his power in January 1925; he appointed as the Prefect of Palermo in October 1925 and granted him special powers to fight the Mafia. Mori formed a small army of policemen, and militiamen, which went from town to town rounding up suspects.

To force suspects to surrender, they would take their families hostage, sell off their property, or publicly slaughter their livestock. By 1928, more than 11,000 suspects were arrested. Confessions were sometimes extracted through beatings and torture. Some mafiosi who had been on the losing end of Mafia feuds voluntarily cooperated with prosecutors, perhaps as a way of obtaining protection and revenge. Charges of Mafia association were typically leveled at poor peasants and (farm leaseholders), but were avoided when dealing with major landowners.

Many were tried en masse. More than 1,200 were convicted and imprisoned, and many others were internally exiled without trial.Mori's campaign ended in June 1929 when Mussolini recalled him to. He did not permanently crush the Mafia as the Fascist press proclaimed, but his campaign was nonetheless very successful at suppressing it. As Mafia informant reminisced: 'The music changed. Mafiosi had a hard life.

After the war the mafia hardly existed anymore. The Sicilian Families had all been broken up.' Sicily's murder rate sharply declined. Landowners were able to raise the legal rents on their lands, sometimes as much as ten-thousandfold. Many mafiosi fled to Canada and the United States. Among these were and who became powerful Mafia bosses in in Canada, as well as and in in the United States.Post-Fascist revival In 1943, nearly half a million troops invaded Sicily.

Crime soared in the upheaval and chaos. Many inmates escaped from their prisons, banditry returned, and the black market thrived. During the first six months of Allied occupation, party politics were banned in Sicily. Most institutions were destroyed, with the exception of the police and, and the American occupiers had to build a new order from scratch. As Fascist mayors were deposed, the (AMGOT) simply appointed replacements. Many turned out to be mafiosi, such as.

They could easily present themselves as political dissidents, and their position gave them additional credibility. Mafia bosses reformed their clans, absorbing some of the marauding bandits into their ranks.The changing economic landscape of Sicily shifted the Mafia's power base from rural to the urban areas. The Minister of Agriculture – a – pushed for reforms in which peasants were to get larger shares of produce, be allowed to form and take over badly used land, and remove the system by which leaseholders (known as ') could rent land from landowners for their own short-term use. Owners of especially large estates were to be forced to sell off some of their land. The Mafia had connections to many landowners and murdered many reformers. The most notorious attack was the, when 11 people were killed and 33 wounded during celebrations on May 1, 1947.

The bloodbath was perpetrated by bandit who was possibly backed by local Mafia bosses. In the end, though, they were unable to stop the process, and many landowners chose to sell their land to mafiosi, who offered more money than the government.In the 1950s, a crackdown in the United States on led to the imprisonment of many American mafiosi. Furthermore, a major hub for drug smuggling, fell to. This prompted American mafia boss to return to Sicily in 1957 to franchise out his operations to the Sicilian clans.

Anticipating rivalries for the lucrative American drug market, he negotiated the establishment of a to mediate disputes. Sack of Palermo. Main article:The post-war period saw a huge building boom in Palermo. Allied bombing in had left more than 14,000 people homeless, and migrants were pouring in from the countryside, so there was a huge demand for new homes. Much of this construction was subsidized by public money. In 1956, two Mafia-connected officials, and, took control of Palermo's Office of Public Works. Between 1959 and 1963, about 80 percent of building permits were given to just five people, none of whom represented major construction firms and were probably Mafia frontmen.

Cosa Nostra Rules

Construction companies unconnected with the Mafia were forced to pay. Many buildings were illegally constructed before the city's planning was finalized.

Mafiosi scared off anyone who dared to question the illegal building. The result of this unregulated building was the demolition of many historic buildings and the erection of apartment blocks, many of which were not up to standard.Mafia organizations entirely control the building sector in Palermo – the quarries where aggregates are mined, site clearance firms, cement plants, metal depots for the construction industry, wholesalers for sanitary fixtures, and so on. Main article:The First Mafia War was the first high-profile conflict between Mafia clans in post-war Italy (the Sicilian Mafia has a long history of violent rivalries).In 1962, mafia boss organized a drug shipment to America with the help of two Sicilian clans, the Grecos and the La Barberas. Manzella entrusted another boss to handle the heroin. When the shipment arrived in America, however, the American buyers claimed that some heroin was missing, and paid Di Pisa a commensurately lower sum. Di Pisa accused the Americans of defrauding him, while the La Barberas accused Di Pisa of embezzling the missing heroin. The Sicilian Mafia Commission sided with Di Pisa, to the open anger of the La Barberas.

The La Barberas murdered Di Pisa and Manzella, triggering a war.Many non-mafiosi were killed in the crossfire. In April 1963, several bystanders were wounded during a shootout in Palermo. In May, survived a murder attempt in. In June, six military officers and a policeman in were killed while trying to dispose of a car bomb. These incidents provoked national outrage and a crackdown in which nearly 2,000 arrests were made. Mafia activity fell as clans disbanded and mafiosi went into hiding.

The Sicilian Mafia Commission was dissolved; it did not re-form until 1969. 117 suspects were put on trial in 1968, but most were acquitted or received light sentences. The inactivity plus money lost to legal fees and so forth reduced most mafiosi to poverty. Smuggling boom The 1950s and 1960s were difficult times for the mafia, but in the 1970s their rackets grew considerably more lucrative, particularly smuggling. The most lucrative racket of the 1970s was. Sicilian and Neapolitan crime bosses negotiated a joint monopoly over the smuggling of cigarettes to.refineries operated by in were shut down by authorities, and traffickers looked to.

Starting in 1975, Cosa Nostra set up heroin refineries around the island. Cosa Nostra sought to control both the refining and distribution of heroin. Sicilian mafiosi moved to the United States to personally control distribution networks there, often at the expense of their U.S. Heroin addiction in surged from the mid-1970s into the early 1980s. By 1982, the Sicilian Mafia controlled about 80 percent of the heroin trade in the northeastern United States. Heroin was often distributed to street dealers from Mafia-owned pizzerias, and the revenues could be passed off as restaurant profits (the so-called ).Second Mafia War.

In the early 1970s, was boss of the and a member of the, and he forged a coalition of mafia clans known as the Corleonesi with himself as its leader. He initiated a campaign to dominate Cosa Nostra and its narcotics trade. Leggio was imprisoned in 1974, so he acted through his deputy, to whom he eventually handed over control.

The Corleonesi bribed cash-strapped Palermo clans into the fold, subverted members of other clans, and secretly recruited new members. In 1977, the Corleonesi had expelled from the Commission on trumped-up charges of hiding drug revenues. In April 1981, the Corleonesi murdered rival member of the Commission, and the began in earnest. Hundreds of enemy mafiosi and their relatives were murdered, sometimes by traitors in their own clans. By manipulating the Mafia's rules and eliminating rivals, the Corleonesi came to completely dominate the Commission. Riina used his power over the Commission to replace the bosses of certain clans with hand-picked regents.

In the end, the Corleonesi faction won and effectively became the 'boss of bosses' of the Sicilian Mafia.At the same time that the Corleonesi waged their campaign to dominate Cosa Nostra, they also waged a campaign of murder against journalists, officials, and policemen who dared to cross them. The police were frustrated with the lack of help that they were receiving from witnesses and politicians. At the funeral of a policeman murdered by mafiosi in 1985, policemen insulted and spat at two attending politicians, and a fight broke out between them and military police. Maxi trial. (in sunglasses) is led into court at the Maxi Trial, circa 1986.In the early 1980s, magistrates and began a campaign against Cosa Nostra. Their big break came with the arrest of, a mafioso who chose to turn informant in exchange for protection from the, who had already murdered many of his friends and relatives. Other mafiosi followed his example.

Falcone and Borsellino compiled their testimonies and organized the which lasted from February 1986 to December 1987. It was held in a fortified courthouse specially built for the occasion. 474 mafiosi were put on trial, of whom 342 were convicted. In January 1992, the Italian Supreme Court confirmed these convictions.War against the state and Riina's downfall The Mafia retaliated violently. In 1988, they murdered a Palermo judge and his son; three years later, a prosecutor and an anti-mafia businessman were also murdered., a close political ally of the Mafia, was murdered for failing to reverse the convictions as promised. Falcone was on May 23, 1992 with 400 kg of TNT positioned under the near, Sicily. Borsellino was also on July 19, 1992.

This led to a public outcry and a massive government crackdown, resulting in the arrest of in January 1993. More and more informants emerged. Many paid a high price for their cooperation, usually through the murder of relatives. For example, mother, aunt, and sister were murdered.After Riina's arrest, the Mafia furthered their campaign of terrorism on the Italian mainland. Tourist spots were attacked, such as the in, in, and the Piazza and Via San Teodoro in, leaving 10 dead and 93 injured and causing severe damage to cultural heritage such as the. The Catholic Church openly condemned the Mafia, and two churches were bombed and an anti-Mafia priest shot dead in Rome. Seven-time, had proved links to the Mafia.Deceased politician and High Court judge have long been suspected of having ties to the Mafia, in addition to mentioned above.

According to a verdict of the 'Corte d'Appello', Italian appellate court, Andreotti 'had, not without personal advantages, knowingly and deliberately nurtured a stable relationship with the criminal organization, contributing to its strength by manifesting his availability to favor its members'; the same court did not incriminate Andreotti due to the statute of limitations, which had been reached at the time of the ruling.By the late 1990s, the weakened Cosa Nostra had to yield most of the illegal drug trade to the crime organization from. In 2006, the 'Ndrangheta was estimated to control 80 percent of the imported to Europe. In 2012, it was reported that the Mafia had joined forces with the.In 2015, the revealed that the Mafia profits from the and exploits refugees.In October 2017, members of the Renzvillo crime family and 2 officers were arrested for involvement in the drug trade and large scale extortion. Altogether 37 people were arrested and over 600 officers were deployed.

€11 million ($12 million) in real estate and goods were seized by police. A business owner was forced to pay €180,000 ($212,000). The Renzvillo mafia family have allegedly set up alliances with the 'Ndrangheta and Camorra. The leader is suspected of previously sending members of his organisation to Karlsruhe and Cologne in Germany.On 22 January 2018, 58 people connected to 16 mafia families were arrested by Carabinieri police in Caltanissetta, Enna, Ragusa, Agrigento. Some of the most common charges were mafia association, drug trafficking, extortion, fraud and vote buying. The mayor of, Santino Sabella, was among the arrested and accused of agreeing candidates for the 2014 local elections with the Sicilian Mafia and exerting pressure on the allocation of council contracts.

Two companies running in Sicily were targeted as protection rackets, overall 27 businesses were targeted and extorted.On 1 February 2018, 31 people with ties to a crime family based in Palermo were arrested and charged with money laundering, fraud and drug trafficking, as part of Operation 'Game over'. Benedetto Bacchi, reportedly controlled over 700 betting shops across Italy and was earning roughly €1 million per month, using an online gambling operator licensed in Malta; his license was suspended. According to investigators, Bacchi bought a construction company, and a villa formerly owned by footballer for €500,000; the next day Bacchi listed the house for sale at the price of €1.3 million. He also allegedly considered taking over a news publication with his criminal proceeds.

Investigators also alleged that the had set up a profitable food export company with the Sicilian mafia.Structure and composition Cosa Nostra is not a monolithic organization, but rather a loose confederation of about one hundred groups known alternately as 'families', ', 'borgatas', or 'clans.' (Despite the name, their members are generally not related by blood.) Each of these claims sovereignty over a territory, usually a town or village or a neighborhood of a larger city, though without ever fully conquering and legitimizing its. For many years, the power apparatuses of the single families were the sole ruling bodies within the two associations, and they have remained the real centers of power even after superordinate bodies were created in the Cosa Nostra beginning in the late 1950s (the ). Clan hierarchy. Of a Cosa Nostra clan.In 1984, mafioso informant explained to prosecutors the command structure of a typical clan. A clan is led by a 'boss' ( capofamiglia or rappresentante) who is aided by an ( capo bastone or sotto capo) and supervised by one or more advisers ( ). Under his command are groups ( decina) of about ten ' ( soldati, operai, or picciotti).

Each decina is led by a.The actual structure of any given clan can vary. Despite the name decina, they do not necessarily have ten soldiers, but can have anything from five to thirty. Some clans are so small that they don't even have decinas and capodecinas, and even in large clans certain soldiers may report directly to the boss.The boss of a clan is typically elected by the rank-and-file soldiers (though violent successions do happen). Due to the small size of most Sicilian clans, the boss of a clan has intimate contact with all members, and doesn't receive much in the way of privileges or rewards as he would in larger organizations (such as the larger of New York). His tenure is also frequently short: elections are yearly, and he might be deposed sooner for misconduct or incompetence.The underboss is second in command to the boss.

The underboss is sometimes a family member, such as a son, who will take over the family if the boss is sick, killed, or imprisoned.The consigliere ('counselor') of the clan is also elected on a yearly basis. One of his jobs is to supervise the actions of the boss and his immediate underlings, particularly in financial matters (e.g. Preventing ). He also serves as an impartial adviser to the boss and mediator in internal disputes. To fulfill this role, the consigliere must be impartial, devoid of conflict of interest and ambition.Other than its members, Cosa Nostra makes extensive use of 'associates'. These are people who work for or aid a clan (or even multiple clans) but are not treated as true members.

These include corrupt officials and prospective mafiosi. An associate is considered by the mafiosi nothing more than a tool, someone that they can 'use', or 'nothing mixed with nil.' The media has often made reference to a ' or 'boss of bosses' that allegedly 'commands all of Cosa Nostra'., and were especially influential bosses who have each been described by the media and law enforcement as being the 'boss of bosses' of their times. While a powerful boss may exert great influence over his neighbors, the position does not formally exist, according to Mafia turncoats such as Buscetta. According to Mafia historian Salvatore Lupo 'the emphasis of the media on the definition of a 'capo di tutti capi' is without any foundation'. Membership Membership in Cosa Nostra is open only to Sicilian men. A candidate cannot be a relative of or have any close links with a lawman, such as a police officer or a judge.

There is no strict age limit; boys as young as sixteen have been initiated. A prospective mafioso is carefully tested for obedience, discretion, courage, ruthlessness, and skill at espionage. He is almost always required to commit murder as his ultimate trial, even if he doesn't plan to be a career assassin. The act of murder is to prove his sincerity (i.e., he is not an undercover policeman) and to bind him into silence (i.e., he cannot break without facing murder charges himself).To be part of the Mafia is highly desirable for many street criminals.

Mafiosi receive a great deal of respect, for everyone knows that to offend a mafioso is to risk lethal retribution from him or his colleagues. Mafiosi have an easier time getting away with crimes, negotiating deals, and demanding privileges.

A full member also gains more freedom to participate in certain rackets which the Mafia controls (particularly protection racketeering).Traditionally, only men can become mafiosi, though in recent times there have been reports of women assuming the responsibilities of imprisoned mafiosi relatives.Clans are also called 'families', although their members are usually not related by blood. The Mafia actually has rules designed to prevent nepotism. Membership and rank in the Mafia are not hereditary. Most new bosses are not related to their predecessor. The Commission forbids relatives from holding positions in inter-clan bodies at the same time. That said, mafiosi frequently bring their sons into the trade. They have an easier time entering, because the son bears his father's seal of approval and is familiar with the traditions and requirements of Cosa Nostra.A mafioso's legitimate occupation, if any, generally does not affect his prestige within Cosa Nostra.

Historically, most mafiosi were employed in menial jobs, and many bosses did not work at all. Professionals such as lawyers and doctors do exist within the organization, and are employed according to whatever useful skills they have. Commission. Main article:Since the 1950s, the Mafia has maintained multiple commissions to resolve disputes and promote cooperation among clans. Each province of Sicily has its own Commission.

Clans are organized into districts ( ) of three or four geographically adjacent clans. Each district elects a representative ( capo mandamento) to sit on its Provincial Commission.Contrary to popular belief, the commissions do not serve as a centralized government for the Mafia. The power of the commissions is limited and clans are autonomous and independent.

Rather, each Commission serves as a representative mechanism for consultation of independent clans who decide. 'Contrary to the wide-spread image presented by the media, these superordinate bodies of coordination cannot be compared with the executive boards of major legal firms. Their power is intentionally limited. And it would be entirely wrong to see in the Cosa Nostra a centrally managed, internationally active Mafia holding company,' according to criminologist Letizia Paoli.A major function of the Commission is to regulate the use of violence. For instance, a mafioso who wants to commit a murder in another clan's territory must ask the permission of the local boss; the commission enforces this rule. Any murder of a mafioso or prominent individual (police, lawyers, politicians, journalists, etc.) must be approved by the commission. Such acts can potentially upset other clans and spark a war, so the Commission provides a means by which to obtain their approval.The Commission also deals with matters of succession.

When a boss dies or retires, his clan's reputation often crumbles with his departure. This can cause clients to abandon the clan and turn to neighboring clans for protection. These clans would grow greatly in status and power relative to their rivals, potentially destabilizing the region and precipitating war. The Commission may choose to divide up the clan's territory and members among its neighbors. Alternatively, the commission has the power to appoint a for the clan until it can elect a new boss. Rituals and codes of conduct Initiation ceremony. Main article:One of the first accounts of an initiation ceremony into the Mafia was given by, a leader of the, a popular movement of democratic and socialist inspiration which arose in Sicily in the early 1890s.

In order to give the movement teeth and to protect himself from harm, Verro became a member of a Mafia group in Corleone, the Fratuzzi (Little Brothers). In a memoir written many years later, he described the initiation ritual which he underwent in the spring of 1893:I was invited to take part in a secret meeting of the Fratuzzi.

I entered a mysterious room where there were many men armed with guns sitting around a table. In the center of the table there was a skull drawn on a piece of paper and a knife. In order to be admitted to the Fratuzzi, I had to undergo an initiation consisting of some trials of loyalty and the pricking of the lower lip with the tip of the knife: the blood from the wound soaked the skull. —Politicians usually repay this support with favours, such as sabotaging police investigations or giving contracts and permits.They are not ideological themselves, though mafiosi have traditionally opposed extreme parties such as Fascists and Communists, and favoured centre candidates. Smuggling Mafiosi provide protection and invest capital in smuggling gangs.

Smuggling operations require large investments (goods, boats, crews, etc.) but few people would trust their money to criminal gangs. It is mafiosi who raise the necessary money from investors and ensure that all parties act in good faith. They also ensure that the smugglers operate in safety.Mafiosi rarely directly involve themselves in smuggling operations.

When they do, it is usually when the operations are especially risky. In this case, they may induct smugglers into their clans in the hope of binding them more firmly. This was the case with heroin smuggling, where the volumes and profits involved were too large to keep the operations at arm's length.Bid rigging The Sicilian Mafia in Italy is believed to have a turnover of €6.5 billion through control of public and private contracts. Mafiosi use threats of violence and vandalism to muscle out competitors and win contracts for the companies that they control. They rarely manage the businesses that they control, but take a cut of their profits, usually through payoffs. Loan sharking In a 2007 publication, the Italian small-business association Confesercenti reported that about 25.2 percent of Sicilian businesses were indebted to, who collected around €1.4 billion a year in payments.

This figure has risen during the, as tighter lending by banks forces the desperate to borrow from the Mafia. Forbidden crimes Certain types of crimes are forbidden by Cosa Nostra, either by members or freelance criminals within their domains. Mafiosi are generally forbidden from committing theft (burglary, mugging, etc.). Kidnapping is also generally forbidden, even by non-mafiosi, as it attracts a great deal of public hostility and police attention. These rules have been violated from time to time, both with and without the permission of senior mafiosi. Violence and reputation Murder. Sheets commemorating murdered Antimafia judges.

They read: 'You did not kill them: their ideas walk on our legs'.Murders are almost always carried out by members. It is very rare for the Mafia to recruit an outsider for a single job, and such people are liable to be eliminated soon afterwards because they become expendable liabilities. Mafia violence is most commonly directed at other Mafia families competing for territory and business. Violence is more common in the Sicilian Mafia than the because Mafia families in Sicily are smaller and more numerous, creating a more volatile atmosphere. Reputation The Mafia's power comes from its reputation to commit violence, particularly murder, against virtually anyone. Through reputation, mafiosi deter their enemies and enemies of their clients. It allows mafiosi to protect a client without being physically present (e.g.

As bodyguards or watchmen), which in turn allows them to protect many clients at once.Compared to other occupations, reputation is especially valuable for a mafioso, as his primary product is protection through intimidation. The reputation of a mafioso is dichotomous: he is either a good protector or a bad one; there is no mediocrity. This is because a mafioso can only either succeed at preventing an act of violence or fail utterly should any violence take place. There is no spectrum of quality when it comes to violent protection. Consequently, a series of failures can completely ruin a mafioso's reputation, and with it his business.The more fearsome a mafioso's reputation is, the more he can win disputes without having recourse to violence. It can even happen that a mafioso who loses his means to commit violence (e.g. His soldiers are all in prison) can still use his reputation to intimidate and provide protection if everyone is unaware of his weakness and still believes in his power.

However, in the tough world of the Mafia, such bluffs generally do not last long, as his rivals will soon sense his weakness and challenge him.When a Mafia boss retires from leadership (or is killed), his clan's reputation as effective protectors and enforcers often goes with him. If his replacement has a weaker reputation, clients may lose confidence in the clan and defect to its neighbours, causing a shift in the balance of power and possible conflict. Ideally, the successor to the boss will have built a strong reputation of his own as he worked his way up the ranks, giving the clan a reputable new leader. In this way, established Mafia clans have a powerful edge over newcomers who start from scratch; joining a clan as a soldier offers an aspiring mafioso a chance to build up his own reputation under the guidance and protection of senior mafiosi.Notable Sicilian mafiosi.