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The Japanese Mafia In The USA

Decent Essays

The Japanese mafia, also known as the Yakuza, is merely an umbrella name that loosely ties all organized crime groups into one group. For the sake of this paper, it needs to be known that the Japanese mafia is largely made of up three syndicates: the Yamaguchi-gumi, the Sumiyoshi-kai and the Inagawa-kai. The Yamaguchi-gumi is the largest of the three, having as many as 35,000 members (_______); that being said, an avid individual would make the assumption that it would be nearly impossible to completely dispose of the Yakuza. An interesting aspect about the Japanese mafia is that they are within the legal bounds of Japan, as opposed to the belief that gangs are automatically classified as illegal, like the Mafia in the United States of America (________).Their origins are dated back to the Edo period where their occupation ranged from gambling and peddling to …show more content…

_____ stated that their name formed from an Asian game of Oicho- Kabu, a version of Black Jack, in which ya-ku-sa is a losing hand. This can further be analyzed as the group calling themselves unworthy and unusable members of society; they are the misfits and do not fit into normal society. The Japanese mafia evolved from lower status to controlling the enterprises of gambling, entertainment and prostitution.
The Yakuza’s dress code and preferred weaponry are a reflection of how they have evolved throughout the years. Traces of the gangs' origins can be realized in the fundamental aspects of modern, yakuza culture. For example, many Yakuza display tattoos (usually located on the backs, shoulders and upper arm) which are created with traditional bamboo or steel needles, rather than

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