Zips (also ''Siggies'' or ''Geeps'') is a slang term in the United States that was especially in use in the mid-20th century. It was often used as a derogatory slur by Italian-American mobsters in reference to newer immigrant Sicilian mafiosi. The mobsters in the US were said to have difficulty understanding the Sicilian dialects of the new immigrants, in which words appeared to "zip" by. Other theories include pejorative uses, such as Sicilians' preference for homemade zip guns. According to another theory, the term is a contraction of a Sicilian slang term for "hicks" or "primitives".

Arrival in the United States

With increasing violence and government presence in Italy,

Sicilians Sicilians () are a European ethnographic group who are indigenous to Sicily, the largest island in the Mediterranean, as well as the largest and most populous of the autonomous regions of Italy. History The Sicilian people are indigenous to ...

found positions in the growing drug trafficking market of

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Five Families The Five Families refer to five American Mafia, Italian American Mafia Crime family, crime families that operate in New York City. In 1931, the five families were Organized crime, organized by Salvatore Maranzano following his victory in the C ...

in the mid-20th century. The Pizza Connection, a heroin-trafficking operation involving Salvatore Catalano, a capo of the

Bonanno crime family The Bonanno crime family (pronounced ) is an Italian American Mafia crime family and one of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City. The family was known as the Maranzano crime family until its founder Sal ...

, and

Gaetano Badalamenti Gaetano Badalamenti (; 14 September 1923 – 29 April 2004) was a powerful member of the Sicilian Mafia. ''Don Tano'' Badalamenti was the capofamiglia of his hometown Cinisi, Sicily, and headed the Sicilian Mafia Commission in the 1970s. In 1 ...

, a Sicilian mafioso, was largely organized by Zips. The Zips were effective because they were unknown in the United States and had no police records. They generally congregated in the

Knickerbocker Avenue The Knickerbocker Avenue station is a station on the BMT Myrtle Avenue Line of the New York City Subway. Located at the intersection of Myrtle and Knickerbocker Avenues in Bushwick, Brooklyn, it is served by the M train at all times. History ...

area. The younger Sicilian mafiosi became known for their reckless and undisciplined behavior, which gained unwanted attention for New York's homegrown crime families. The Zips had no qualms about murdering people who had been considered off-limits by the American Mafia, such as police officers, judges, and women and children. They were also known for using bombs to kill their targets. Although bombings were commonly used by the Sicilian Mafia, American mafiosi have usually shied away from bombs out of concern that they could put innocent people at risk. Zips were also known to have killed enemies who were already on their deathbeds. In the Sicilian Mafia, when someone is marked for death, that person cannot be allowed to die of natural causes. The group was tolerated because they earned millions of dollars for the families, specifically the Bonanno and Gambino families. Both

Carmine Galante Carmine Galante (; February 21, 1910 – July 12, 1979) was an American Mafioso who was ''de facto'' boss of the Bonanno crime family of New York City. Galante was rarely seen without a cigar hanging from his mouth, leading to the nickname "T ...

and

Carlo Gambino Carlo Gambino (; August 24, 1902 – October 15, 1976) was a Sicilian crime boss who was the leader and namesake of the Gambino crime family of New York City. Following the Apalachin Meeting in 1957, and the imprisonment of Vito Genovese i ...

used zips for

drug-running The illegal drug trade, drug trafficking, or narcotrafficking is a global black market dedicated to the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of prohibited drugs. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types ...

and

contract killing Contract killing (also known as murder-for-hire) is a form of murder or assassination in which one party hires another party to kill a targeted person or people. It involves an illegal agreement which includes some form of compensation, moneta ...

. Galante's two personal bodyguards,

Cesare Bonventre Cesare "The Tall Guy" Bonventre (January 1, 1951 – April 16, 1984) was a Sicilian gangster who served as a caporegime in the Bonanno crime family, operating out of Knickerbocker Avenue in Bushwick. Bonventre alongside Salvatore “Toto” Cata ...

and Baldo Amato, were Zips. Many Italian-American mobsters distrusted the Zips. Bonanno soldier Benjamin "Lefty" Ruggiero explained in a conversation to undercover FBI agent

Joseph "Donnie Brasco" Pistone Joseph Dominick Pistone (born September 17, 1939) is an American former FBI special agent who worked undercover as Donnie Brasco between September 1976 and July 1981, as part of an infiltration primarily into the Bonanno crime family under the ...

"Lots of people hate him alante.. There's only a few people he's close to. And that's mainly the Zips... Those guys are always with him. He brought them over from Sicily, and he uses them for different pieces of work and for dealing all that junk
rugs A carpet is a textile floor covering typically consisting of an upper layer of Pile (textile), pile attached to a backing. The pile was traditionally made from wool, but since the 20th century synthetic fiber, synthetic fibres such as polyprop ...
They're as mean as he is. You can't trust those bastard Zips. Nobody can. Except the Old Man."

On another occasion, Ruggiero told Pistone, "They hate the American people. They hate the American wiseguys". Bonanno soldier

Anthony Mirra Anthony "Tony" Mirra (July 18, 1927 – February 18, 1982) was an American mobster, Soldato, soldier and later caporegime for the Bonanno crime family. He is known for introducing FBI Special Agent Joseph "Donnie Brasco" Pistone into the Bonanno ...

told Pistone, "The Zips are

clannish A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, a clan may claim descent from a founding member or apical ancestor who serves as a symbol of the clan's unity. Many societies' ...

and

secretive Secrecy is the practice of hiding information from certain individuals or groups who do not have the "need to know", perhaps while sharing it with other individuals. That which is kept hidden is known as the secret. Secrecy is often controver ...

. They are the meanest killers in the business".

References

*Kelly, Robert J. ''Encyclopedia of Organized Crime in the United States''. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 2000. *Sifakis, Carl. ''The Mafia Encyclopedia''. New York: Facts On File Inc., 2005. *Pistone, Joseph D.; & Brandt, Charles (2007). ''Donnie Brasco: Unfinished Business'', Running Press. . *Pistone, Joseph D.; & Woodley, Richard (1999) '' Donnie Brasco: My Undercover Life in the Mafia'', Hodder & Stoughton. . *Raab, Selwyn. ''The Five Families: The Rise, Decline & Resurgence of America's Most Powerful Mafia Empire''. New York: St. Martins Press, 2005. *Crittle, Simon, ''The Last Godfather: The Rise and Fall of Joey Massino'' Berkley (March 7, 2006) *DeStefano, Anthony. ''The Last Godfather: Joey Massino & the Fall of the Bonanno Crime Family''. California: Citadel, 2006.

Arrival in the United States

See also

References

Further reading