Working Thesis:
La Cosa Nostra, more commonly known as the Sicilian Mafia, was seen as dangerous, manipulative, and in charge since before the word “mafia” was even developed, in the agrarian and feudal Italy. However, the mafia, after an intensive crackdown in the 1990s, has been declining in both influence and reputation both in Italy and in the United States. This loss of relevance has many factors the most relevant of which are the arrest of head bosses, tension within the mafia itself, and resistance by the public.
Who are La Cosa Nostra:
- Important bosses
- Relevant trials
- Defectors
- Any other large figures
General History:
- Where did it begin
- How did it begin
- Who began it
- Summary of beginning until 1990s which is where the analysis starts
Reasons for Decline:
- Families turned on each other (mafia wars)
- The assassinations of important magistrates
- Hoarding and buying up of building plans
- Arrest of Toto Riina
- Increased surveillance technology
- Defectors
- Too much influence in politics, public started to notice
- Public holding small rebellion against their rule
- Money
- Drug trafficking (both for and against)
- Violence
