Sitting in a dimly lit, smoke filled room on the second floor of a private club, a group of men discuss private matters in a hushed voice. These men, with elaborate body tattoos, flashy American cars, tight fitting shiny suits, and prostitutes on their arms are part of the Yakuza, an organized crime group in Japan similar to the Italian Mafia. With around 110,000 active members and around 2,500 crime families (Bruno, Anthony), the Yakuza is the most influential crime group in Japan. Even though modern police along with the Japanese government have the means required to end the group, the Yakuza have managed to exist for years. Despite the fact the the Yakuza is not nearly as powerful as they once were and are wanted by the police, they continue to exist today because of their acceptance in society, the large role that they play in many industries and corporations, and the firm political alliances that they possess with right-wing nationalists.
In the Japanese language, ‘Ya’ means eight, ‘ku’ means nine, and ‘sa’ means three. These numbers add up to twenty, which is the number of the losing hand in the popular card game Hana-Fuda. This adds up to the name ‘Yakuza’ do symbolize the “bad hands of society” (Bruno, Anthony). The Yakuza officially originated after World War II, when the Japanese were forced to surrender to the Allied forces. However, some people claim that the Yakuza actually originated as far back as the seventeenth century and were known as the Kabuki-Mono (Bruno, Anthony). The Kabuki-Mono were a Samurai group who strived to be as original as possible, with things such as outrageous hair, dress and slang. During the Tokugawa era, and era of peace, the samurai were no longer needed, thus leaving the leaderless Kabuki...
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...have the ability to go to company meetings where they use various methods in order to collect incriminating information about the company, which they then use as company blackmail, until the managers agree to compensate the Yakuza. This is highly effective due to the fact that the Yakuza are always very polite and passive aggressive about their threats, however due to their societal prominence, everyone knows that they will in fact follow through with whatever they threaten to do. The Yakuza also has a history of doing things such as setting up booster clubs and throwing galas for fake causes. Scams like these bring in around $100,000 in a single night (Bruno, Anthony). The Yakuza basically do whatever they can to make money from scams and gain ties from powerful corporations.
Lastly, The Yakuza still exist today because of their ties with right wing nationalists
South, David. The History of Organized Crime: Secrets of The World’s Most Notorious Gangs. New York: Metro Books, 2013. Print.
The brothers’ vigilante deviance has many causes, all stemming form the Social theory of deviance. The Labeling, Conflict and Strain theories are three of the most important theories for understanding what caused the brothers to start, continue, and stop killing the mafia. Each of the theories plays a part in causing the brothers’ to kill, but without all of them they would not have the acceptance and success that they did. These theories, even though they are meant for the real world are just as relevant for works of fiction in movies and books.
A gang is an organized group with a recognized leader whose activities are either criminal or, at the very least, threatening to the community. (Walker, 2011) Throughout history there have been some infamous gangs that have gotten media attention and others that have gone under the radar. One of the more underground gang structures are prison gangs. The Nuestra Familia may not be in the news as much anymore compared to other gangs, but they are nothing to be taken lightly. Prison gangs have been around since the late 20th century and only seem to be getting stronger if nothing is going to be done to prevent them. Gangs in prison have members in and out of prison. One of the more popular gangs that has been gaining steam recently is the mainly Hispanic gang La Nuestra Familia. The purpose of this paper is to write about the history of the NF, the structure in which it operates, and some good preventative tactics that could prevent prison gangs from becoming stronger.
Stories about war and implements of such can be observed throughout the course of Japanese history. This shows the prevalence of martial training and the profession of arms as a tradition that has not faded since ancient times (Friday and Humitake 13).
Throughout History, there have been many different groups or events that are still widely known today. Groups of people such as the Indians or Vikings are popular groups which are referenced constantly in today’s society. However, none of these groups is more known or referenced than the Japanese Samurai. Originating in 646 AD, these Japanese warriors developed from a loose organization of farmers to the dominant social class in Feudal Japan. Along with their dominant military and political standing, the samurai brought with them a unique code or moral belief that became the core of Samurai culture. Because of this, the Samurai and their principles still affect modern day Japanese society with social customs today deriving directly and indirectly from the beliefs of the Samurai.
The term samurai was first used in the 10th century and means “those who serve”. In the beginning it stood for men who guarded the capital for the Emperor, some where used as tax collectors. Later the word grew to include any military man who served a powerful landlord, almost like a police force for that time. They would go around the countryside on horseback collecting taxes from the peasants, often this was in the form of rice. This money helped the Emperor pay for his lavish life style. The word, samurai, quickly spread and was respected (and maybe feared a little) for the men it represented.
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 of 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.
The Mafia was first started in the ninth century, in Sicily. At this time, Arab forces were occupying Sicily. The natives were being oppressed, so they took refuge in the surrounding hills and formed a secret society to protect against the foreign invaders. This secret society was named Mafia, after the Arabic word for refuge. The society's intentions were to create a sense of family, based on ancestry and Sicilian heritage.
Japan was known to be a very reserved, and conformist in many ways. Bosozoku stuck out in this way between their long Tokkofuku, which resembled bomber jackets, brightly colored and loud motorcycle or cars they demanded attention. Each motorcycle had its own individual flare but was adorned with the gangs flag. Creating a community filled with unique individuals. Another fascinating piece is that once the youth reach adult age, which is 20 in Japan, they cease to be Bosozoku. In a majority of cases, they join the workforce and work blue-collar jobs. Though some do go on to have a criminal lifestyle as Yakuza.
The Mafia is a secret criminal organization that has great economic and political control over large parts of Sicilian society and operates both criminal and legitimate enterprises in the United States. It is believed to have started during Sicily's late Middle Ages, beginning as separate bonds of strong-arm enforcers hired by local landowners. It eventually evolved into a network of independent groups governing in rural areas. With the Sicilian immigration of the late 19th century, the Mafia began to operate in several large United States cities. During the period of Prohibition it monopolized the trade in bootleg liquor and controlled loan sharking, gambling, and prostitution. Competing Mafia families established mutually recognized territories, reaching agreement by negotiation or by intimidation. By the mid-1930 the Mafia had taken on the institutionalized structure that is now typical of organized crime in the United States.
In Japan there is the Yakuza, also known as the 'Japanese Mafia', which consists of up to 2,500 families. The three largest groups in the Yakuza are the Yamaguchi-gumi, Sumiyaoshi-kai, and Inagawa-kai. These three groups together have around 61,100 members, or seventy-three percent of the gangster population in Japan. These organizations have been in existence for about 300 years, and have their roots in the Tokugawa period (1600-1867), when Japan united under a central system of government (Abadinsky, 2010, 2007) . Some suggest that the Yakuza are the true heirs of the samurai, as the samurais formed structured groups of organized crime after the feudalism in Japan ended. T...
Our team presentation focused on three Latino gangs, MS-13 (Mara Salvatrucha), the Mexican Mafia and the Los Surenos gang. My part of the presentation was to provide information on the type of crime these three gangs are known to commit. The crimes committed by the MS-13 gang are varied, violent, and take place all over the country. The FBI even put together a task force called the MS-13 National Gang Task Force in December of 2004 to try to put a stop to this gang’s activities. (www.fbi.gov). Los Surenos or Sur-13, originally based in Los Angeles, has also branched out from turf wars with rival gangs to “for profit”, violent crimes across the country. The Mexican Mafia has a similar story to tell as well in regards to gang crimes, which again range from respect crimes, and retaliatory violence to crimes for profit.
Peter Maas declares organized crime the “biggest business in the country” (Maas). “The largest and best known organized crime group is the nationwide organization variously known as the ‘syndicate’, the ‘mob’, the ‘Mafia’, and the ‘Cosa Nostra’” (Nash, Jason O-155). Some activities of the Mafia include gambling, loan sharking, pornography, illicit drugs, and racketeering. The Mafia began in Sicily, but did not retain to just that one location. In fact, in the late nineteenth century many of the Sicilian members immigrated to the United States (Nash O-155). The Mafia in the United States contains members that are Americans with Sicilian ancestry (“Mafia” M-48). There are several Mafia groups in the United States. Law enforcement authorities agree that there are around twenty-five groups that operate in large cities across the nation (Nash O-155).
I asked a Japanese friend of mine once, "Are there gangs in Japan?" I've since learned that Japan has a long history of gangs, including everything from high school motorcycle gangs to the Yakuza, but he shook his head. He said there were no gangs, but in Japan sometimes kids just go crazy. He told me the story of a boy who would kill people on the street, discretely, and then hide in an alley to watch the ensuing action. He was eventually caught with the murder weapon near one of his crime scenes. This was several years ago, and I wrote the story off as an urban legend.
There are many historical aspects of the Japanese, but the most interesting is the history of the Samurai. In Japans history war played a large role in the country. Controlling clans fought for parts of the land and overall control of the country. These clans were powerful families that resided in the country and who all wanted power and control of Japan for themselves. The families that would be in control were known as Shoguns. These shoguns would have warriors that fought for them if any of the other clan families would try to attack him in order to overthrow him and take his power from him. The Samurai followed a code that developed from Chinese beliefs when in battle. The Samurais code was known as the Bushido. This code was also known as “The Way of The Warrior” which was the main belief s...