Umberto Santino

As an expert on mafia organisations, Umberto Santino elucidates the nature and structure of the Sicilian mafia phenomenon as well as the building of the anti-mafia movement and related campaigning by civil society representatives and social organisations in Sicily.

This work narrates the anti-mafia movement that started in Sicily at the end of the 19th century and extended to the entire Italian peninsula in more recent years. Santino recounts the origin of the Sicilian mafia organisation, the reactions to it by Italian institutions, and the socio-cultural context by drawing from different authors and first-hand interviews.

This long article touches on the development of the anti-mafia movement and distinguishes within it civic anti-mafia and social anti-mafia. It delineates the developments that took place in three different periods of time in Italy: 1950s, that saw the birth of the nonviolent anti-mafia movement; the 1960s and 1970s, when socio-political-cultural aspects of the anti-mafia movement started to develop organically; up to the 1980s-1990s, a period that saw the development of the pacifist movement rising against the US militarisation of the Italian island of Sicily that paralleled the reinforcement of the anti-mafia movement and a stronger participation of organisations within it alongside individuals. It touches also on the growth of the anti-mafia movement outside the confines of Sicily, and its extension to the entire Italian peninsula, mainly because of the activity of teachers and students that facilitated the adoption of the first set of anti-mafia legislation and led to the removal from public offices of staff involved with the mafia organisation.  It also establishes a conceptual distinction between the anti-mafia movement and social movements as traditionally considered, and stresses the peculiar nature of the first as being pro-system and anti-system, simultaneously. Finally, it highlights the weak points that undermine the continuity and cohesiveness of the anti-mafia movements.

Retrievable also at: http://www.centroimpastato.com/voci-per-il-dizionario-di-mafia-e-di-antimafia-di-narcomafie-2/

This long article highlights the three different periods of time that defined the anti-mafia movement, namely from 1891-1894 until 1950s; 1960s and 1970s; and from 1980s up to now. The analysis provides an initial understanding of the typology and tools of the anti-mafia struggle in each of these phases, alongside the ethical and cultural factors that supported it. The article also elucidates the social, economic and cultural composition of the mafia organisation as well as the anti-mafia movement and touches upon its development as a national movement, rather than configuring it as an issue concerning solely the island of Sicily. Finally, it depicts the peculiar characteristics of the anti-mafia movement and what differentiates it from social movements as traditionally considered, by contextualising the analysis within power relationships in Italy.

This article briefly narrates the life of Giuseppe (aka, Peppino) Impastato, who initiated a cultural and political change that then gave rise to the anti-mafia movement from the 60s onwards. Impastato’s life is highly symbolic because of his political and civil anti-mafia struggle stemmed from his personal experience. In fact, he belonged to a family where his father was affiliated to the Mafia criminal organisation, and had his uncle murdered by them. Impastato’s revolt against some core members of his family, including his father, led to his murder in 1978, but he is still considered in Italy as one of the most iconic figures of the nonviolent anti-mafia struggle today.

Retrievable also at: http://www.centroimpastato.com/umberto-santino-peppino-impastato-alle-radici-dellantimafia-difficile/