The Camorra of Naples and Crime in America

As the 18th century came to a close, crime in Naples began to change for the worse. Small gangs of poor criminals had always pestered Neapolitans, but now, it seemed, something was changing about the crime dynamic in Italy. All of a sudden, small gangs started working together to do bigger, more terrible things. Rather than simple robberies and thefts, these gangs worked together to accomplish bigger things-and as they did, they spread their corruption through businesses and government institutions throughout Naples. Eventually this group, which has come to be known as "The Camorra," controlled so many aspects of Naples that they virtually owned it.

Some people like to draw comparisons between The Camorra and American criminals, but in reality the two are very different. Besides the obvious similarities, such as both do immoral and illegal things and are more active in poor areas, The Camorra and American criminals are very different. Most crime in the United States is committed by single individuals, not by large groups like The Camorra. The Camorra is characterized by a loose organization of independent groups. Each group is bound by family and geographical ties, and controls activities which take place in its particular territory. This organized structure of crime is very different from crime in America, where most criminals operate independently of each other.

Also, the crime committed by individual American criminals is very different from that of The Camorra. While crime in the U.S. consists of mostly thefts, assaults, and murders, The Camorra operates through blackmail, bribery, and extortion, which is in turn backed by thefts, assaults, and murders. While petty criminals in the United States commit smaller crimes and crimes of passion that don't lead to a larger goal, The Camorra attempts to completely control certain aspects of Naples through fear and political corruption. One example of this is the garbage crisis in Campania that still exists today. In the mid 1990's, local officials of Naples were bribed to corruption, blackmailed, and extorted to give an expensive contract to dispose of waste in Naples to corrupt organizations discreetly owned by The Camorra. It was already enough when The Camorra used its poison to get this contract, but then, instead of doing the duty of collecting and disposing of waste properly, The Camorra simply mixes heavy metals, industrial waste, chemicals, and household garbage together, dumps them near roads, and then burns them to avoid detection-leading to severe soil and air pollution. This has had horrible results on both the health of the general population and of the environment. A very similar event took place with The Camorra owning the contract to the production of concrete in Campania after a large earthquake in the 1980's-The Camorra gained almost a million euros by cutting costs on important aspects of concrete production. And because The Camorra has such a strong grip of fear on Naples, no one has the guts to do anything about it. Those that do open there mouths are killed, and many times their families are threatened. As you can see, compared to the American criminal, The Camorra is much more conniving and ruthless, and uses a corrupt political agenda to do things that would be impossible for American criminals to do individually.

While there are some organized crime syndicates, such as the Bloods and the Crips, which operate in the United States, these are also very different from The Camorra of Naples. While American crime syndicates are involved in mostly drug distribution and prostitution rings, The Camorra involves itself in many illegal activities. Yes, The Camorra is heavily involved in drug selling and prostitution, but the organization even goes as far as to import and export drugs, guns, and women throughout Europe, South America, and Africa. The Camorra even runs illegal lottery rings and commits fraud within the political institutions it controls. In this way, The Camorra involves itself deeply in many more types of illegal practices than do any American crime syndicates.

This is all not to mention that the sheer power of The Camorra over Naples is much greater than the power any American crime syndicate has over an area. While American crime syndicates continually battle with the government of America, The Camorra has spread its corruption so far through the political spectrum that it controls most political and judicial power in Napels. The Camorra also has considerable power in the private sector. While some American crime syndicates do have "fronts," legitimate businesses to hide illegal activities or to launder money, The Camorra receives money from almost all industries and companies of Naples and the surrounding area in the form of a "tax". This tax, called the "pizzo," is "protection" money paid to The Camorra. However, the only thing a business is "protected" from by paying is the wrath of The Camorra, itself.

While American crime is horrible in itself, it doesn't even come close to the amount of havoc The Camorra wreaks on Naples. Through bribery, extortion, blackmail, and corruption, The Camorra has infiltrated most aspects of Neapolitan life, feeding off the citizens of Naples like some terrible parasite. With American crime, the possibility of hope still exists-as long as the police enforce the law, people can live in mostly peace. But in Naples, there are no police to enforce rules, no government to pass laws, and no courts to sentence criminals that haven't in some shape or form been touched by The Camorra.

Works Cited:

"Camorra." Wikipedia.com.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camorra

"Camorra." SpeedyLook Encyclopedia.
http://www.speedylook.com/Camorra.html

"Camorra." Britannica Online Encyclopedia.
http://encyclopedia.jrank.org/CAL_CAR/CAMORRA.html

"There is no Mafia in America." AmericanMafia.com
http://www.americanmafia.com/Feature_Articles_430.html

Behan, Tom. "How The Camorra Works." The Camorra. Published 1996.