Are "The Godfather" and "Peaky Blinders" whitewashing the mafia?

Ryan Gingeras' history book, "Mafia: A Global History," outlines the origins of organized crime and why it has persisted for centuries, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.

A scene from Peaky Blinders. Photo: Screenshot Rant .

"Mafia" is a term that appears to have existed in Italy since the post-Renaissance period. Although American professor and historian Ryan Gingeras offers a different interpretation, suggesting that "mafia" may originate from an Arabic word meaning "boaster." This word spread to Italy centuries later when North African Muslims arrived in Sicily.

Regardless of its origin, the semantics of the term were not particularly important to Gingeras. He viewed it as a general term for all forms of organized crime involving violent and bloodthirsty acts.

Did the Mafia originate in ancient times?

Long before it was called the mafia, this form of crime was known as banditry. From ancient times, right up to the Middle Ages, bandits roamed the countryside. Ironically, civilization, in the sense of building large cities and urban centers, is what caused mafia gangs to rise and replace banditry. As Gingeras said: “Industrialization and urbanization left no environment for bandits to exist and operate in.”

World history is intertwined with the disintegration and formation of nations. And it is this process that creates a favorable environment for gangs to emerge and seize power in places where the influence of state institutions has not yet reached.

Gingeras mentioned the growing power of Chinese organized crime gangs when the country descended into chaos following the collapse of the feudal regime in the early 20th century. Or the Camorra gangs in Naples and the Mafia in Sicily that flourished in areas where Italy's new government had yet to gain control.

The book was released on February 12th. Photo: Amazon .

In Japan, yakuza forces have long operated discreetly, "growing in parallel with Japan's national restructuring." The yakuza typically recruit members from the "lower echelons of society," providing them with work and a purpose in life.

Leading readers on a journey through the mafia from ancient Rome to modern-day Las Vegas, author Gingeras argues that mafia gangs have "reflected" and "contributed to shaping the modern world."

Throughout time and space, they have retained striking similarities, such as sectarianism, the ruthless enforcement of rules, and strict adherence to esoteric initiation rituals.

Cinema brought the mafia to the public.

While devoting much of the book to the crimes and power of the global mafia, author Gingeras also addresses the changing public image of organized crime. In the United States, the power of the mafia weakened towards the end of the 20th century. The Grand Organized Crime Act of 1970 allowed prosecutors to charge mob bosses with misconduct by their subordinates.

Meanwhile, there was also a divergence in business practices and the public appearances of mob bosses. A veteran of the American mafia once complained to John Gotti, the flamboyant boss of the Gambino crime family: "It took a hundred years to build this (the image of power and mystery of the mafia), and you're destroying it in just six months."

In Turkey, people started calling notorious gangsters "baba" (godfather) after watching Francis Ford Coppola's film *The Godfather *.

Meanwhile, the sites of these violent confrontations have become tourist attractions. Visitors flock to the Mafia Museum in Las Vegas, whose bullet-riddled walls mark the scene where seven of mob boss Capone's rivals were shot dead with machine guns in 1929. The site even boldly offers discounted admission for law enforcement.

In the world of modern cinema, the character of Tommy Shelby, a notorious gangster in Peaky Blinders , has captivated audiences worldwide with Cillian Murphy's outstanding performance.

These films not only gave the public a certain degree of admiration for the mafia but also caused the bosses themselves to change their behavior. Gingeras noted that a Mexican drug cartel, when recruiting members, even required them to watch The Godfather "as a necessary lesson about the meaning of loyalty and family values."

Source: https://znews.vn/bo-gia-va-peaky-blinders-tay-trang-cho-gioi-mafia-post1649688.html