CRIME AND PUNISHMENT. ORGANIZED CRIME- WHAT IS IT, AND CAN IT BE STOPPED? PT 8.

The Rapid Growth OF ORGANIZED CRIME, FROM THE NUMERICALLY SMALL SHOOT 'EM UP BANK ROBBERS of the '20s and '30s, and the INNER CITY ETHNIC GANGS That Were the Product OF CULTURAL ISOLATION AND POVERTY, Was the REALIZATION BY A FEW HIGH PLACED CRIMINAL LEADERS THAT BIG MONEY AND INFLUENCE COULD BE OBTAINED BY PROVIDING AMERICANS WITH SPECIFIC GOODS, LUXURIES, AND THE OPPORTUNITY TO ENGAGE IN  CERTAIN PERSONAL "ACTIVITIES."

To put it Bluntly, it is a lot easier to get people to give you Money Voluntarily,

then figuring new ways to take it from them.  LEGALITY WAS NOT A 

MAJOR CONSIDERATION, THERE WAS TO MUCH MONEY TO BE MADE. 

SIMPLY ROBBING, BLACKMAILING, AND KILLING etc.,  WERE CRIMINAL 

ACTS THAT OFFERED LIMITED RETURNS, AND JUST CREATED MORE 

ENEMIES FROM THE VICTIMIZED AND THE POWERS THAT BE.  

However,

what if PEOPLE CAME TO THEM WITHOUT COERCION, AND OF THEIR 

OWN FREE WILL?

 This "GREAT AWAKENING" OCCURRED MAINLY AS A PRODUCT OF TWO EVENTS:

-  THE 18TH AMENDMENT, "PROHIBITION."

-  CASTELLAMMARESE WAR OF 1930-1931.

While certain CRIMINAL ACTS THAT ARE THOUGHT OF AS TRADITIONALLY

"MOB OR GANG RELATED" AND "THUG LIKE,"  STILL EXIST, THEY ARE NOT 

AS LUCRATIVE AND WIDESPREAD AS THEY ONCE WERE.

THESE INCLUDE:

-  LOANSHARKING.

-  PROTECTION RACKETS.

-  UNION INFILTRATION

OR UNION BUSTING.

-  EXTORTION.

...AND CRIMES THAT BRING IN 

THE ATTENTION OF THE FEDERAL 

GOVERNMENT, SUCH AS;

-  COUNTERFEITING.

-  KIDNAPPING.

THESE CRIMES ATTRACTED TO MUCH 

ATTENTION, AN UNDESIRABLE RESULT.

CRIME AND PUNISHMENT. ORGANIZED CRIME- WHAT IS IT, AND CAN IT BE STOPPED? PT 7.

Contrary to what Many People Think, some of the Most Well Known Criminals from Different Periods of American History were NOT THE MOST SUCCESSFUL, OR THE MOST DESTRUCTIVE.  

In some Cases They Were Portrayed that Way by ZEALOUS NEWS OUTLETS, WHO CARED FOR LITTLE MORE THEN EYE GRABBING HEADLINES. Truth was Considered to be a NEGOTIABLE PRODUCT OF DOING BUSINESS.

This is Especially True when we look at Prohibition\Depression years, ( 1920s- 1930s).  Gangs, like those Frequently Portrayed in Melodramatic Hollywood Movies which Glamorized Criminals like John Dillinger, Bonny and Clyde, Pretty Boy Floyd, Baby Face Nelson, Alvin Karpis, Doc Barker etc., were Definitely Murderous and Cold Blooded, and Their Criminal Activities Captured the Publics Imagination, with some considering Them "Robin Hoods" of the Time. ( Just like Those who Thought the JAMES GANG OF THE OLD WEST were Benefactors of the Poor.  Yes, People could be just as Clueless and Ignorant about Reality back Then, as They are now.)

However, Their Heyday, (Late 1920s- Mid 1930s), never came close to having a Significant or Lasting Impact on Society.  Bank Robberies, the Crime They became most noted for, usually resulted in Amounts that Rarely Exceeded a few Thousand Dollars. ( Kidnapping, although far less Publicized, was much more Lucrative.)

Amounts like These would be Considered Chump Change, in comparison to Organized Criminal Activities in Large Cities. (Ironically Enough, the Immense Growth of Organized Crime in Urban Areas, Basically Coincided with the Era of the Most Notable Criminal Acts of the Better Known Bank Robbers.)

So why did the Dillingers, Barkers and Others of Their Ilk Disappear, while at the Same Time Organized Crime began to Spread into Fresh New Areas of Business and Commerce?

Look for Part 8.

CRIME AND PUNISHMENT. ORGANIZED CRIME- WHAT IS IT, AND CAN IT BE STOPPED? PT 6.

So what are the Major Differences Between the Gangs of Yesterday and Today, 

and MODERN ORGANIZED CRIME?

FIRST, Organized Crime became a REAL FORCE When the Many Ethnic, 

Neighborhood, and Independent Gangs Realized Three Things;

-  That PROHIBITION WAS A DREAM COME TRUE.

-  Making Money was the ONE THING ALL WANTED, 

AND KILLING EACH OTHER WAS COSTING TIME AND

CASH.

-  It is Much Easier to CORRUPT CERTAIN POLITICIANS 

AND OTHERS IN CIVIL AUTHORITY, THEN TO FIGHT THEM.

To go through all the Changes and Characters that Populate the History

of Crime in the U.S during the 19th and 20th Centuries would fill 

Volumes, so I'll stick to some of the More Important Facts and Figures.

It is often Amusing how American History has been Skewed to 

Dramatize the Importance of Outlaw Gangs in the "OLD WEST", as the

Forerunners of Todays Criminal Element.  

Sorry to Destroy this Myth, but while They could be Vicious, Cruel, and as 

Murderous as any other, it was the GANGS CREATED IN THE MAJOR CITIES

OF THE EAST AND MIDWEST THAT GAVE RISE TO MODERN ORGANIZED CRIME. 

GANGS FROM THESE LOCALES WOULD BECOME THE FOUNDATION 

FOR THE LARGEST AND MOST SUCCESSFUL CRIMINAL ENTERPRISES

WE HAVE TODAY.

Oh, by the way, if you are Thinking that I am Referring to such"GANGS"

as the "DILLINGERS", "BARKERS", OR ''BONNY AND CLYDE", NOTHING

COULD BE FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH.  

CRIME AND PUNISHMENT. ORGANIZED CRIME- WHAT IS IT, AND CAN IT BE STOPPED? PT 5.

So what was the the Real Foundation for the Establishment of Organized Crime in the U.S.? Well, Quite Simply...

...It was the REALIZATION BY THE NEIGHBORHOOD/ETHNIC GANGS, that ONLY VICTIMIZING THOSE WHO; 

-  Lived and Worked in the Same General Area as the ROSTER OF INDIVIDUALS WHO MADE UP THE MEMBERSHIP.

-  Were Part of Their Ethnic Group.

-  Had Limited Economic Resources and 

Employment Opportunities. 

Could not Offer the Guarantee of enough Ill-Gotten Wealth to Satisfy the Greed and Desired Lifestyle of Those who Preferred Using Terror and Force on Innocent Victims, Even IF IT MEANT VICTIMIZING THOSE WHO WERE TRYING TO DO NOTHING MORE THAN SUPPORT AND RAISE A FAMILY.

Why?

The FORMATION OF GANGS AMONG ETHNIC GROUPS

WAS USUALLY THE RESULT OF AN UPSURGE IN NUMBERS

OF IMMIGRANTS, AND THE DIFFICULTY OF EACH GROUP

TO ASSIMILATE INTO A NEW CULTURE, SOMETIMES BECAUSE 

OF THE HOSTILITY AND PREJUDICE FROM NATIVISTS AND

ANTI- IMMIGRATION POLITICIANS, OR ANY GROUP IN POWER WHO 

REFUSED TO SHARE ANY PART OF IT.

These Situations OFTEN RESULTED IN NEWLY ARRIVED 

IMMIGRANT POPULATIONS BEING DENIED FAIR 

OPPORTUNITIES IN EMPLOYMENT, CREDIT OR HOUSING.

So, Just to Survive, They had to Accept Jobs that the 

Resident Population REJECTED or COULD NOT FILL IN

SUFFICIENT NUMBERS.

So any Kind of Real Wealth, Even Through Criminal Activity,

was usually Located in Other Populated Areas and Neighborhoods.