Philadelphia's Black Mafia

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xi

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2. Introduction

   Pages 1-5

3. Research Methodology

   Pages 6-14

4. Social History 1968–1974

   1. 1968–1972: The Origins of the Black Mafia

      Pages 17-34

   2. 1973–1974: Murder and Infamy

      Pages 35-66

   3. 1968–1974: Social Movements, Social Systems and the Black Mafia

      Pages 67-88

   4. The Politics of Ignorance and the ART of Exploitation

      Pages 89-110

5. Social History, 1975–2002

   1. 1975–1984: Philadelphia’s Black Mafia on the Wane

      Pages 113-123

   2. 1985–2002: Old Heads, Old Habits

      Pages 124-133

6. Criminology and the History of African-American Organized Crime

   1. Discussion: Contemporary Academic Perspectives on the Black Mafia and African-American Organized Crime

      Pages 137-156

   2. Conclusions

      Pages 157-166

7. Back Matter

   Pages 167-211

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Philadelphia's 'Black Mafia' could be used as primary reading in deviance and organized crime courses. Academicians in the fields of criminology, sociology, history, political science and African-American Studies will find the book compelling and important. This book provides the first sociological analysis to date of Philadelphia's infamous "Black Mafia" which has organized crime (with varying degrees of success) in predominantly African-American sections of the city dating back to the late 1960's.
Philadelphia's 'Black Mafia':

-is a first step in developing both data and sophisticated theoretical propositions germane to the ongoing study of organized crime;
-uses primary source documents, including confidential law enforcement files, court transcripts and interviews;
-explores the group's activities in detail, depicting some of the most notorious crimes in Philadelphia's history;
-thoroughly examines the organization of the Black Mafia and the group's alliances, conspiracies and conflicts;
-challenges many of the current historical and theoretical assumptions regarding organized crime.

• Crime
• Criminology
• Mafia
• political science
• politics
• social history
• sociology

"Griffin's research is mind-boggling, in the best sense. He has rendered Philadelphia and the United States a valuable historical document."
(James Nicholson, former investigative reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer)

"...an important contribution to the study of organized crime for two reasons. It removes a white spot on the map with respect to African-American organized crime, and at the same time it adds significantly to our knowledge of the overall crime picture in Philadelphia from the late 1960s through the mid 1980s."
(Klaus von Lampe, European Consortium for Political Research)

Philadelphia's 'Black Mafia' provides the first comprehensive analysis to date of Philadelphia's infamous "Black Mafia" which has organized crime (with varying degrees of success) in predominantly African-American sections of the city dating back to the late 1960's. Philadelphia's 'Black Mafia': uses primary source documents, including confidential law enforcement files, court transcripts and interviews; explores the group's activities in detail, depicting some of the most notorious crimes in Philadelphia's history; thoroughly examines the organization of the Black Mafia and the group's alliances, conspiracies and conflicts; and challenges many of the current historical and theoretical assumptions regarding organized crime.

- Written by a former Philadelphia police officer.

- Based on primary source documents, including thousands of confidential law enforcement files, court transcripts, and interviews.

- Explores the "Black Mafia's" activities in detail, depicting some of the most notorious crimes in Philadelphia's history.

• Department of Sociology, Clemson University, Clemson, USA

  Sean Patrick Griffin

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