- Scampìa
Scampìa is a modern suburb in the north of
Naples with many social problems. The population is about 80,000.Geography
The district lies in the far north of Naples. To the south are the suburbs of
Piscinola-Marianella ,Miano andSecondigliano .History
Scampia was built as a bedroom suburb in 1960s. The area was mostly developed in the 1970s and 1980s, with huge, high-rise residential blocks, in particular after the 1980 earthquake with construction of housing for displaced Neapolitans. Huge apartment complexes, wide boulevards and a massive park were built, without commercial districts or entertainment venues. [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A6310-2005Feb7.html In Naples, a Mob Family Feud] , The Washington Post, February 8, 2005] With 50% unemployment there is a very high crime rate, with
heroin andcocaine sold and used openly in the streets. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4054359.stm Mafia vice blights Naples school] , BBC News, November 30, 2004]Large metal gates on some of the walkways and stairs in the blocks of flats have been put there, not by the council, but by the
Camorra , so they can be locked by drug pushers as they flee the police. [http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2004/dec/18/italy.johnhooper Weekends turn bloody in Naples mafia war] , The Guardian, December 18 2004]Scampia was the territory of the Di Lauro
Camorra clan, which controlled the drug trade and most other activities in the area. In 2004 a bloody agang war erupted in the area, the so-calledScampia feud ("Faida di Scampia"), between the Di Lauro clan and a breakaway fraction, the so-called "secessionists" (Italian "scissionisti"). [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4075269.stm Naples police in huge mafia swoop] , BBC News, December 7, 2004] [http://www.streetgangs.com/topics/2005/021705drug.html Gang's Deadly Feud Plagues Naples] , Los Angeles Times, February 17, 2005]The tragic death of an innocent girl,
Gelsomina Verde , caused widespread public revulsion and led to a major crackdown by the authorities. She was abducted, brutally beaten in an effort to get her to disclose the whereabouts of a gang member involved in the feud, and finally shot in the neck. Her body was stuffed in a car that was set on fire. [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20041208/ai_n12823915 ‘The blood is running': Mafia wars erupt again] , The Independent, December 8, 2004]Notes and references
External links
*it icon [http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3296977503353722755 L'Altra Scampia] video documentary on Scampia
*it icon [http://video.aol.com/video-detail/ballaro-droga-a-scampia-secondigliano-napoli/409631546?icid=acvsv2 Ballarò: droga a Scampia (Secondigliano, Napoli)] video report on drug trafficking in Scampia
* [http://video.aol.com/video-detail/scampia-camorra-napoli-ground-zero/2804586399 Scampia Camorra Napoli Ground Zero] video impression
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