How do guys refer to other families?

[PolackTony]

I'd be interested in knowing which made members used the term "syndicate".

One important thing is differentiating between what member sources said vs. associates or other outsiders. Would be curious which actual members used syndicate, as that term was most heavily used by the media, LE, and non-members.

Most non-member sources are less relevant to this conversation in my opinion. It's like when Gene Borello tried to say nobody uses the term capodecina/caporegime anymore and got smacked back down to earth by Pennisi and Franzese.

That’s an important point.

[B.]

One of the issues with the Black Hand is it referred to anyone doing it. Sicilian mafia members did it, but so did independent Italians (sometimes victimizing mafia members) and mainland groups. What makes it tricky is it was used to refer to multiple kinds of groups, not just Cosa Nostra / mafia.

If you do a search in old newspapers you really have to do your homework when it mentions "Black Hand". If you see Sicilian names you might be able to piece it together but many times they used it for anyone engaging in that particular activity. It doesn't necessarily indicate they were part of an organization at all.

[Antiliar]

Vito di Giorgio used "Black Hand" in his 1908 extortion scheme, but I think he borrowed the name to frighten his victim. There were probably many cases like this where Mafiosi called themselves "Black Hand" as a sort of boogeyman.

[B.]

Vito di Giorgio used "Black Hand" in his 1908 extortion scheme, but I think he borrowed the name to frighten his victim. There were probably many cases like this where Mafiosi called themselves "Black Hand" as a sort of boogeyman.

Very interesting.

In a way it makes sense, because he would be violating the rules if he said "This is the Onorata Societa" or even "This is the mafia", plus it isn't as intimidating.

-

Here is the report where Augie Maniaci said "the mafia" came to be called "the outfit" in Milwaukee. He also says he only heard (La) "Cosa Nostra" casually.



(The Allegra part is in reference him calling the Sicilian branch "the Mafia")

[FatmanFatfists]

John Pennisi said He and his crew referred to bonanno guys as bananas instead.

[ChicagoOutfit]

Sam DeCavalcante used "outfit" to refer to many Families on his tapes also.

Cleveland and Milwaukee used "outfit" heavily as well.

If I’m not mistaken, I recall seeing “outfit” used a couple of times from some of the documents on NY guys as well, though I don’t have a citation at hand (maybe I’m just confusing this with the DeCavalcante tapes). Doesn’t seem to have been common there, but wouldn’t shock me if it was used occasionally.

Outfit is a pretty obvious informal term, so not surprised it was used all over the country. You even see it in the Old West with outlaws. I remember Nick Caramandi saying Chucky Merlino used "outfit" just to refer to the crew of associates who were tasked with killing one of the Riccobenes.

Chicago Outfit to me is the same as the names like Bonanno, Colombo, etc. It was used casually like it was in the other midwest/western Families then got picked up in the media and the members themselves latched onto it just like members in NYC used "La Cosa Nostra" in later years. I think it's given ousiders the impression the "Outfit" means some completely distinct type of organization when it's not.

100% agreed.

There's little evidence "mafia" was a term used by the organization itself in Sicily but when all of these plays and stories came up calling it that in 1800s Italy, you end up with the members themselves using it. Rocco Scafidi said when he was made it was called the mafia but when he got taken off the shelf they told him to call it Cosa Nostra. What's fascinating is Cosa Nostra became the main name in both US and Sicily around the same time.

Needles Gianola also stated that the Chicago family was referred to as “the mafia” back in the day and that later “outfit” supplanted it as the popular usage. Given that Louie Bombacino claimed that “Black Hand” was also used in Chicago, one might assume this was another likely case of a term popularized by LE and the media that became adopted by the actual organization (possibly trading in the currency of the term to invoke the terroristic nature of the old “black hand” lore as a way of building up a mythos around the mob. But, for all we know, it’s even possible that the mafia in Chicago in the early 20th century already called itself the “black hand/Mano nera”. We don’t know how they referred to themselves back then. FWIW, Frank Cullotta also claimed that before it was called the “outfit” it was called the “black hand”, in the context of his father dealing with an extortionist on Grand Ave back in the 30s).

Regarding the near-simultaneity of the emergence of “Cosa nostra” in both NYC and Sicily — given the apparent likelihood that the usage was first popularized by the Mangano fam, I think this speaks to the closeness of the NYC-Palermo network and its resurgence/restrengthening in the years immediately after WW2 and the reconstruction of Italy.

I think it was Ed on here who once said human beings just have a need to name things even when they technically don't have a name. Even "Cosa Nostra" was a casual euphemism used in the absence of a formal name but it became a somewhat formal name as we now know it.

There’s a whole postmodern/post-structuralist philosophy dissertation that never happened there, lol.

I brought this up with CC a little while back to get his thoughts. Borgata technically means "township" but seems to be used to refer to neighborhoods as well, i.e. Palermo. I wouldn't be surprised if it was used mainly among the Palermo families originally which might be why we see it in NYC/NJ where Palermo was so dominant.

It's interesting Bompensiero used it so much considering NYC was the area he had the least amount of contact with during his national travels. But he was a protege of Jack Dragna who came up in East Harlem so maybe Dragna used it.

That’s a reasonable hypothesis and good point on the Palermitani context.

Always enjoy getting into the language stuff with you Tony -- cheers brother.

Same here, bro. Na zdrowie

This is the first I’ve heard that the term “Cosa Nostra” started in the Mangano family. Do you have any more info on this?

[UTC]

In Under The Clock, Balsamo referred to the White Hand, not in the common usage of anti-Italian gangs, but as being Irish extortionists. Anyone see any use of the term that way other than in his book?

[PolackTony]

In Under The Clock, Balsamo referred to the White Hand, not in the common usage of anti-Italian gangs, but as being Irish extortionists. Anyone see any use of the term that way other than in his book?

In Chicago some influential people in the Italian community organized a “White Hand” organization to ostensibly combat the black hand, though IIRC there were some mafia connected people actually affiliated with it (don’t recall the specifics at the moment).

In some account of Capone’s life in Brooklyn before Chicago that I remember reading years back, he was alleged to have had conflicts with a “White Hand” that was supposedly an Irish gang on the BK waterfront, though I don’t know if that is apocryphal or actually supported by any evidence.

[Ed]

Balsamo had another book devoted to the "White Hand," called "Always Kill A Brother." It purportedly told the story of the battle in the 1920s between the "Black Hand" (Italians) and the "White Hand" (Irish) for control of the NYC underworld. He called the alleged five-year war the "Ginzo-Mick War." Lots of recreated dialogue with known and unknown hoodlums. As I recall, Balsamo claimed it was based on massive amounts of research, but it couldn't tell you how much was actual or invented.

[B.]

Balsamo had another book devoted to the "White Hand," called "Always Kill A Brother." It purportedly told the story of the battle in the 1920s between the "Black Hand" (Italians) and the "White Hand" (Irish) for control of the NYC underworld. He called the alleged five-year war the "Ginzo-Mick War." Lots of recreated dialogue with known and unknown hoodlums. As I recall, Balsamo claimed it was based on massive amounts of research, but it couldn't tell you how much was actual or invented.

I can accept a little bit of manufactured dialogue in a member/associate's memoir given it is (in theory) from memory, but it's a huge red flag when outsider authors do it.

Joe Bonanno had a very intelligent explanation for his approach -- early in the book he says he'll put a dash in front of something where he's paraphrasing from memory rather than quoting directly. It's that kind of nod to detail that makes me forgive some of the other issues with his account.