Mafia As a Difficult Heritage: Cultural Commodification and Urban Tourism
Mafia As a Difficult Heritage: Cultural Commodification and Urban Tourism
Thursday, 10 July 2025: 00:00
Location: ASJE016 (Annex of the Faculty of Legal, Economic, and Social Sciences)
Oral Presentation
Mafia and, more broadly, organized crime represent an unavoidable aspect of contemporary society and the life of many communities. Over time, they have become part of the cultural landscape in many areas, and through the sedimentation of cultural stereotypes often conveyed by the media, they have also become a significant element of the tourist image of these regions.
From this perspective, the mafia constitutes a "difficult heritage," an aspect of historical and cultural identity that local communities, territorial stakeholders, and national agencies struggle to manage but nonetheless exploit as it becomes fully integrated into processes of heritage-making and tourism.
A series of converging mechanisms ultimately result in the commodification, banalization, and touristic exploitation of the mafia.
The liquid and post-modern culture of our society (even though it may be in a phase of transition) accelerates the processes of banalization and commercialization of history and cultural heritage. This also contributes to the banalization and touristic exploitation of the mafia, which is transformed into a tool for commercial theming, territorial marketing, and emotional and experiential tourism.
This process is further driven by a broader trend toward the patrimonialization of every cultural and social expression, promoted by both national and supranational agencies that protect cultural heritage, as well as by stakeholders seeking to highlight new attractions for their territories.
At the local level, the social and economic fragility of many areas (whether individual neighborhoods, entire cities, or regions) drives parts of the local community to capitalize on the tourist appeal of the mafia, responding to and regenerating the "tourist gaze" of visitors. These processes can be seen as forms of reappropriation of one's past (and potentially legitimate).
The paper examines several significant and paradoxical cases of the mafia's exploitation as a heritage element and tourist attraction.
From this perspective, the mafia constitutes a "difficult heritage," an aspect of historical and cultural identity that local communities, territorial stakeholders, and national agencies struggle to manage but nonetheless exploit as it becomes fully integrated into processes of heritage-making and tourism.
A series of converging mechanisms ultimately result in the commodification, banalization, and touristic exploitation of the mafia.
The liquid and post-modern culture of our society (even though it may be in a phase of transition) accelerates the processes of banalization and commercialization of history and cultural heritage. This also contributes to the banalization and touristic exploitation of the mafia, which is transformed into a tool for commercial theming, territorial marketing, and emotional and experiential tourism.
This process is further driven by a broader trend toward the patrimonialization of every cultural and social expression, promoted by both national and supranational agencies that protect cultural heritage, as well as by stakeholders seeking to highlight new attractions for their territories.
At the local level, the social and economic fragility of many areas (whether individual neighborhoods, entire cities, or regions) drives parts of the local community to capitalize on the tourist appeal of the mafia, responding to and regenerating the "tourist gaze" of visitors. These processes can be seen as forms of reappropriation of one's past (and potentially legitimate).
The paper examines several significant and paradoxical cases of the mafia's exploitation as a heritage element and tourist attraction.