Is The Mafia Good Or Bad

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When people talk about whether the Mafia is truly good or bad, it becomes a controversy. However, in today’s society it is often found to be a pure evil organization. This paper will examine the criminal behaviors of this terrifying organization known as the Mafia, specifically looking at the history of the organization, and how it evolved into a terrorist group. This paper will also argue the form of terrorism that it has become. First, in order to understand the severity and the unlawful nature of the Mafia it is important to know it is defined. Per Dictionary.com, “The Mafia is a hierarchically structured secret organization allegedly engaged in smuggling, racketeering, trafficking in narcotics, and other criminal activities in the U.S., …show more content…

For centuries, Sicily, an island in the Mediterranean Sea between North Africa and the Italian mainland, was ruled by a long line of foreign invaders, including the Phoenicians, Romans, Arabs, French and Spanish. Sicily’s violent and oppressive history of government and its numerous corrupt and inconsistent rulers (especially in regards to its justice system) nurtured an atmosphere of self-reliance and cooperation among the people. This reliance and respect was induced by fear, instilled by violence and threats, and backed by an organization of family and friends. These groups, which later became known as clans or families, developed their own system for justice and retribution, carrying out their actions in secret. By the 19th century, small private armies known as “mafie” took advantage of the frequently violent, chaotic conditions in Sicily and extorted protection money from landowners. From this history, the Sicilian Mafia emerged as a collection of criminal clans or families (Servadio, …show more content…

Families use a variety of activities to accomplish this. One of the most common is extortion. Extortion is forcing people to give up their money by threatening them in some way (“Extortion,” 2016). Mafia "protection rackets" are extortion schemes. For example, they tell a shop owner that she needs to pay them $200 a week so they can "protect" her from criminals who might destroy the shop or even hurt her family. The Mafia makes money by participating in virtually any activity that is illegal. Illegal goods are expensive, untaxed and unregulated. Over the years, mobsters have dealt in alcohol during Prohibition, illegal drugs, prostitution and illegal gambling. These examples are also a form of terrorism from below. Terrorism from below involves the use of political violence by people who wish to challenge or overthrow official state power (Landis & Theodore, 2013). Terrorist often have foot soldiers to do the dirty work. the bottom-level member of an organized crime Family, as in "foot soldiers." These people often believe since they have sacrificed so much that they deserve an award. They usually steal from the target which is known a form of terrorism from

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