Women with and Against the Mafia. a Case Study of Sicily SIAK-Journal − Zeitschrift Für Polizeiwissenschaft Und Polizeiliche Praxis (2), 48-59
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.SIAK-Journal – Zeitschrift für Polizeiwissenschaft und polizeiliche Praxis Martellozzo, Elena (2005): Women With and Against the Mafia. A Case Study of Sicily SIAK-Journal − Zeitschrift für Polizeiwissenschaft und polizeiliche Praxis (2), 48-59. doi: 10.7396/2005_2_D Um auf diesen Artikel als Quelle zu verweisen, verwenden Sie bitte folgende Angaben: Martellozzo, Elena (2005). Women With and Against the Mafia. A Case Study of Sicily SIAK- Journal − Zeitschrift für Polizeiwissenschaft und polizeiliche Praxis (2), 48-59, Online: http://dx.doi.org/10.7396/2005_2_D. © Bundesministerium für Inneres – Sicherheitsakademie / Verlag NWV, 2005 Hinweis: Die gedruckte Ausgabe des Artikels ist in der Print-Version des SIAK-Journals im Verlag NWV (http://nwv.at) erschienen. Online publiziert: 4/2014 AUSGABE 2/2005 .SIAK - JOURNAL A Case Study of Sicily: Elena Martellozzo Women With and Against the Mafia. The business of the Mafia is largely conspiracy of silence is particularly essen- by definition the preserve of men; men tial for Cosa Nostra's endurance it is ratio- who have displayed a remarkable talent nal to think that it should be applied mainly for cunning, cruelty, murder and may- towards women. Repentant Calderone hem. For the most part, women have support this contention and underlines, remained silent and unseen, or, as most "(…) if women know something, they will scholars would say, they have remained talk. Sooner or later they will talk (…)" "invisible". The fact that the Mafia is a (Repentant Antonino Calderone 1996, 9). secret, criminal monosex male organi- Mafia men, in their rare conversations on zation is of particular importance when women, described them as totally dedicat- starting from a viewpoint of subjectivity ed to their families. They were portrayed as and when listening to those who have perfect mothers and obedient wives, experienced the Mafia is a known fact unaware of the violent criminal activities of that only men can become part of the their husbands. However, these women, Mafia: A man can be affiliated to the on occasion, also got involved, either Mafia, while a woman can only belong because they found themselves caught "by to it, in so far as she belongs to a Mafia chance" in some violent conflicts or be- man. Thus, it could be argued that the cause unwittingly witnessed crimes or thin line that both separates and distin- because, and this is the impression that guishes the affiliation with the Mafia exists today, they were directly involved between man and women is the formal themselves. Lella Golfo explains: "For cen- ceremony during which each novice, turies the women of Southern Italy have Elena Martellozzo, BSc., MSc., strictly male, has to swear an oath of adjusted to male structural models and val- Doctorate researcher and a visi- faithfulness and silence. However, this ues, believing that their role was to “sup- ting lecturer in Criminology and different way of been associated to the port” and sustain man's initiatives. The wo- Research Methods at the Mafia is merely a formality; a formality man is mother, daughter, wife, lover, a sub- University of Westminster. MSc in that has often led the society to believe ject that has identified only in relation to Crime, Deviance and Control from that women are extraneous to the Mafia others and that lack autonomy. The woman the London School of Economics and unaware of the activities of their protects and covers the man, without being and Political Science and worked menfolk. It is the aim of this paper to conscious of her responsibility" (Golfo as a researcher for both Oxford reject this contention and to prove that 1993, 9). University and the Strategic this is a naïve and dangerous miscon- In Sicily, as in many other regions of Research Unit at the Metropolitan ception. Italy, there is a lot of confusion about the Police. Currently conducting field- criminal capacity of women. The venera- work for her PhD at New Scotland The Typology of Mafia Women. The main Yard on police practice and strate- reason why the organization rigorously ex- gies for combating child abuse on cludes women can be explained by the the Internet. Involved in the evalua- words of the former Mafia boss Antonino tion of the Safer Surfing Calderone: "(…) women reason in a spe- Programme on behalf of the cial way. All the women, even those mar- Vocabulary: Metropolitan Police Service, ried to Mafiosi or coming from Mafia fami- United Kingdom. lies. When a woman is wounded in her mayhem = Körperverletzung affiliation = Zugehörigkeit e-mail: dearest affections, she doesn't reason any- extraneous = belanglos [email protected] more. No conspiracy of silence (omertá) contention = Behauptung can resist, Cosa Nostra is not there any- misconception = Missverständnis conspiracy = Verschwörung more, there are no arguments or rules to endurance = Ausdauer, Durchhaltevermögen restrain her (…)" (Repentant Antonino unwittingly = unabsichtlich Calderone 1996, 9). Thus, considering that 48 AUSGABE 2/2005 .SIAK - JOURNAL tion of motherhood makes Italians unwill- Sociologist Renate Sibert supports this ing to think of women as capable of des- argument and comments: "If the image of tructive or dangerous behaviour, and this women which the Mafia organization It is important to make a distinction attitude has lead to a number of question- sought to attribute publicly was one of sub- between those born and bred in able acquittals. ordinate traditional mothers and perfect Mafia families and those who enter When evaluating the responsibility and wives, all kitchen sink and church and, into relation with the Mafia either effective commitment of women in Mafia- above all, in the dark about their menfolk's for temporary criminal activity or on type crime, it is necessary, first of all, to criminal activities, the reality is very differ- account to personal relation clarify between the various different levels ent" (Sibert 1996, 11). with Mafiosi. of participation. As pointed out previously, Aside form her ability to bear, look after in the Mafia the social composition of its children and educate them as expected, a affiliates is non-homogeneous; likewise the woman's most important quality is her abil- women we find in its sphere of influence ity to be "invisible". Liliana Madeo (Madeo are extremely diverse. For this reason it is 1994) explains that women of Mafia boss- important to make a distinction between es are aware of the importance of discre- those born and bred in Mafia families and tion: "They have always known that they A "good" woman of the Mafia is those who enter into relation with the Mafia have been chosen as wives or partners, expected to dedicate her life to her either for temporary criminal activity or on with the agreement of the entire Mafia fam- family and especially to her husband. account to personal relation with Mafiosi. ily, because of their ability to be silent and not to attract attention, to lead a private life, Cosa Nostra and the So-called "Mafia to not let strangers in the home, and not to Women". The traditional Sicilian values associate with people from different back- associate women to the realm of the home grounds" (Madeo 1994, 69). However, this and the family excluding them categorical- is not to say that women are unaware of ly from the inner workings of the Mafia. At what happens in their family and around the same time, those same values impose them. There is a widespread dictum that on them all the restrictions of silence and "women don't know". According to Sibert, Aside form her ability to bear, look loyalty, which are required of members of "this convenient subterfuge should be after children and educate them as the organization. A "good" woman of the revised straight away" (Sibert 1996, 148). It expected, a woman's most important Mafia is expected to dedicate her life to her would be naïve to think that women really quality is her ability to be "invisible". family and especially to her husband. In do not understand what goes around them other words, her main task is to "maintain in their house and in their family if we con- the good image of her man by not asking sider "the comings and going of her hus- questions, keeping to herself, following him band and children, the evidence, in one wherever he asks her to go, and above all way or the other, of what they are involved bearing his (preferable male) children" in, the amount of money circulating in the (Fabj 1998, 193). Mafia women gain more house" (Sibert 1996). Indeed, this con- respect once they become mothers. How- tention is also supported by the former ever, expectations become higher, in the Mafia boss, Antonino Calderone who sense that they have to transmit to their children the values of the Mafia and to instil in them a deep sense of loyalty for the organisation. As De Pretis (De Pretis 1996) rightly Vocabulary: points out, the so-called Mafia women are acquittal = Freispruch members of the organization (albeit indi- commitment = Engagement, Verpflichtung rectly), even if they have not been affiliated subterfuge = Ausflucht with the traditional ceremony. 49 AUSGABE 2/2005 .SIAK - JOURNAL states that it is difficult, if not impossible for nomic power by proxy on temporary basis" a Mafioso to hide his activities from his (Sibert 1996, 11). Usually these women act The first rule, and perhaps the most wife, despite of Cosa Nostra's strict rules as "carriers" between men on the run or in important, prohibits the members for Mafiosi concerning women. The first prison and members of the organization of the organisation to inform women rule, and perhaps the most important, pro- who can move freely in the light of the day about Cosa Nostra activities.