by B. » Sat Mar 22, 2025 11:32 am
I see the induction of the Brooklyn guys in the 1970s and 80s similar to early American Families inducting Camorristi.
You look at the New Jersey and Manhattan-Queens factions and they're heavily Sicilian, mostly interrelated clans of compaesani who operated very quietly, their main "racket" being labor extortion with some local gambling as well, but a significant number of the members were legitimately employed or ran their own small businesses with an "alta mafia" element like Carlo Corsentino who in addition to running his funeral parlor was Vice-President of the Elizabeth Board of Education (member Gerry Guarraggi also sat on the board). Many of the Elizabeth guys were celebrated local figures, John Riggi being the best example given he was high school class president, a three letter athlete, WWII veteran, co-founder of the local Pop Warner league, friends with the mayor, had enough influence to move the Christopher Columbus statue to Peterstown, etc. JoJo Ferrara I believe was even a youth counselor for a time. If you isolate the DeCavalcantes to Elizabeth they are basically identical with a Sicilian cosca.
Then Cocchiaro recruits these tough Brooklyn kids, most if not all of which had mainland heritage, were involved in any/every street crime, had violent reputations, presented as "gangsters", and actually came from neighborhoods in Brooklyn that once produced early NYC Camorristi. Sharp contrast with the Elizabeth and Manhattan-Queens guys. But Sam DeCavalcante and John Riggi obviously saw the value in recruiting them, guys like Farone, Jimmy Rotondo, and the Gallo brothers all proposed for membership already by the mid-1960s and others like Telese and DePietro also getting made in the 1970s when the books reopened. Rotondo and Farone were quickly elevated, too, and these crews and their offshoots end up immensely powerful. As Rotondo's testimony shows, the Brooklyn faction were basically doing whatever they pleased and the New Jersey leadership just nodded along, the Brooklyn guys even committing murders before getting "official" approval. Of course they were the undoing of the Family too, as along with their treachery and violence all of the members who cooperated were from this faction. The Elizabeth leadership encouraged and facilitated this, though -- it's not like the Brooklyn guys forced their way in.
I see the induction of the Brooklyn guys in the 1970s and 80s similar to early American Families inducting Camorristi.
You look at the New Jersey and Manhattan-Queens factions and they're heavily Sicilian, mostly interrelated clans of compaesani who operated very quietly, their main "racket" being labor extortion with some local gambling as well, but a significant number of the members were legitimately employed or ran their own small businesses with an "alta mafia" element like Carlo Corsentino who in addition to running his funeral parlor was Vice-President of the Elizabeth Board of Education (member Gerry Guarraggi also sat on the board). Many of the Elizabeth guys were celebrated local figures, John Riggi being the best example given he was high school class president, a three letter athlete, WWII veteran, co-founder of the local Pop Warner league, friends with the mayor, had enough influence to move the Christopher Columbus statue to Peterstown, etc. JoJo Ferrara I believe was even a youth counselor for a time. If you isolate the DeCavalcantes to Elizabeth they are basically identical with a Sicilian cosca.
Then Cocchiaro recruits these tough Brooklyn kids, most if not all of which had mainland heritage, were involved in any/every street crime, had violent reputations, presented as "gangsters", and actually came from neighborhoods in Brooklyn that once produced early NYC Camorristi. Sharp contrast with the Elizabeth and Manhattan-Queens guys. But Sam DeCavalcante and John Riggi obviously saw the value in recruiting them, guys like Farone, Jimmy Rotondo, and the Gallo brothers all proposed for membership already by the mid-1960s and others like Telese and DePietro also getting made in the 1970s when the books reopened. Rotondo and Farone were quickly elevated, too, and these crews and their offshoots end up immensely powerful. As Rotondo's testimony shows, the Brooklyn faction were basically doing whatever they pleased and the New Jersey leadership just nodded along, the Brooklyn guys even committing murders before getting "official" approval. Of course they were the undoing of the Family too, as along with their treachery and violence all of the members who cooperated were from this faction. The Elizabeth leadership encouraged and facilitated this, though -- it's not like the Brooklyn guys forced their way in.