The book presents views of organized crime in the Americas from many perspectives. It describes criminal groups that are significant to contemporary as well as future and historical criminology. The book is divided into five parts. Each part begins with an introduction that explains a significant concept about organized crime and how the readings in the part illustrate the concept. The five parts include: (1) Illicit Enterprise (Discussion: Corporate Crime (The Rape of the Third World) and Moonshiners (The Political Economy of Mountain Dew); (2) Ethnicity and Tradition (Discussion: Chinese Gangs (Gang Characteristics) and The Yakuza (North America: Foothold on the Mainland); (3) Violence (Discussion: The Medellin Cartel (La Comuna Nororiental [The Northeastern Collective]) and The Vice Lords (Excerpt From There Are No Children Here); (4) Opportunity (Discussion: Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs (Women and the Outlaws) and The Russian Organizatsiya (The Organizatsiya); and (5) Criminal Justice Policy (Discussion: Chicano Prison Gangs (Baby Mafia or Family) and Pirates (Pirates and Profiteers). Notes, references, bibliography, index