Includes bibliographical references (p. [211]-245) and index.
Contents
Explaining organized crime -- The gem of the prairie -- The black Mafia -- The syndicate -- The Forty-two Gang -- The outfit -- The outfit as a complex organization -- Street crew neighborhoods.
Summary
Lombardo provides a comprehensive sociological explanation for the emergence and continuation of organized crime in Chicago. Tracing the roots of political corruption that afforded protection to gambling, prostitution, and other vice activity in Chicago, he challenges the dominant belief that organized crime in America descends directly from the Sicilian Mafia.
