Is the stereotype about Italian gangsters still true?

Ganesh Venugopal@lemmy.ml to Asklemmy@lemmy.ml – 37 points –

I was watching House M.D. and it showed two Italian brothers who were gangsters and involved in illegal activity. Like a crime family, Godfather type.

So, I know where the stereotype originates from. Italians came from Italy to the shores of America as migrants in the last century and were able to make a life of their own, but a small sliver (I think) of the community did involve themselves in not so legal activities. I thought it was the thing of the past that Italians were disproportionately involved in Criminal activities and I had though they got mixed in the American melting pot and probably are not disproportionately involved in crimes anymore. So, is the stereotype of Italian gangsters still true to this day (I know probably to a lesser degree?)

I must say I am not white/American/Italian or anyone who has anything to do with these groups. I have never seen an Italian in real life and I don't hold any prejudices against or for them.

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Like many other things, it really depends on the community and whatnot. For instance, I was building a power plant in Pennsylvania, and rented an apartment in Old Forge; I lived directly across the street from where they held the annual Italian heritage festival, and about a block from a very locally famous cafe. Outside this cafe sat a Buick with a custom license plate that said "MAFIA"

There were also signs everywhere around town that said something along the lines of "Soandso has been missing for an amount of time and SOMEONE IN THIS TOWN KNOWS WHERE HE IS"

I also shoveled the older lady who lived next door's sidewalk and porch the first time it snowed while I was there; she said she was gonna tell her son what I did, and then I never had to shovel another sidewalk for the next two years. Mine or elseways.

So that could be something.

Whoever has that license plate is almost certainly not in the mob, they don’t like to use the word mafia or mob. Generally they just call their criminal activity “this thing we have”. Vaguealities and innuendo help insulate the organization from prosecution.

Vaguealities and innuendo help insulate the organization from prosecution.

Interesting. they should hire my girlfriend, she's good at that.

I also shoveled the older lady who lived next door’s sidewalk and porch the first time it snowed while I was there; she said she was gonna tell her son what I did, and then I never had to shovel another sidewalk for the next two years. Mine or elseways.

My English is not as good as yours. Can you explain this more (sorry)? The son was an italian, an influential man who made sure the sidewalks were shovelled?

The whole community was heavily Italian, steeped in mafia lore, and generally had an air of "being looked after." The shoveling incident just seemed to me a little like I had been turned into a "made man".

It was probably all just me being a naive little Kentucky boy far from home, but... I dunno.