Scampìa is a modern suburb in the north of Naples

Naples

Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...

. 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

Piscinola-Marianella

Piscinola, or Piscinola-Marianella, is a northern suburb of Naples, Italy, with a population of ca. 20,000.-History:Until 1865 it was an autonomous municipality merged in Naples....

, Miano

Miano

Miano is a suburb of Naples with a population of around 26,000.-History:Since the recent administrative reorganization of the area, Miano is part of the 10th community board.-Economy:...

 and Secondigliano

Secondigliano

Secondigliano is a relatively modern suburb in the north of Naples, in southern Italy.-History:The name may derive from a contraction of "secondo" and "miglio" since the area was at the second milestone on the old road to Capua...

.

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. With 50% unemployment there is a very high crime rate, with heroin and cocaine

Cocaine

Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...

 sold and used openly in the streets.

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

Camorra

The Camorra is a Mafia-type criminal organization, or secret society, originating in the region of Campania and its capital Naples in Italy. It is one of the oldest and largest criminal organizations in Italy, dating to the 18th century.-Background:...

, so they can be locked by drug pushers as they flee the police.

Scampia was the territory of the Di Lauro clan

Di Lauro clan

The Di Lauro clan is an Italian crime clan, part of the Camorra in Naples. The clan operates in the neighbourhoods of Secondigliano, Scampìa, Miano, Marianella, Piscinola, and in the adjacent municipalities of Casavatore, Melito, Arzano, Villaricca and Mugnano...

, which controlled the drug trade and most other activities in the area. In 2004 a bloody gang war

Gang War

Gang War is a 1928 gangster film, best known for being the main feature attached to Steamboat Willie, the debut of Mickey Mouse in sound. The film starred Jack Pickford in his last major role, as "Clyde", a saxophone player whose love for a dancer named Flowers traps him in the middle of a gang war...

 erupted in the area, the so-called Scampia feud

Scampia feud

The Scampia feud was a feud between the Camorra gangs in the neapolitan quartiere of Scampia and it broke out in 2004 and 2005...

 (Faida di Scampia), between the Di Lauro clan and a breakaway fraction, the so-called "secessionists

Scissionisti di Secondigliano

The Scissionisti di Secondigliano is a Camorra clan from the Secondigliano district of Naples, headed by Raffaele Amato and Cesare Pagano. They are also known as "Spagnoli" because of their endless trips ferrying cocaine from Galicia in Spain...

" (Italian "scissionisti").

The death of an innocent woman, Gelsomina Verde

Gelsomina Verde

Gelsomina Verde was an innocent victim of the Camorra who was tortured and subsequently murdered during the Scampia feud in the city of Naples on November 21, 2004. She was 22 years old....

, 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.

Scenes from the movie Gomorrah

Gomorra (film)

Gomorrah is a 2008 Italian film directed by Matteo Garrone, based on the book by Roberto Saviano. It deals with the Casalesi clan, a crime syndicate within the Camorra — a traditional criminal organization based in Naples and Caserta, in the southern Italian region of Campania.-Plot summary:The...

were filmed in the neighbourhood.

External links

L'Altra Scampia video documentary on Scampia Ballarò: droga a Scampia (Secondigliano, Napoli) video report on drug trafficking in Scampia

• Scampia Camorra Napoli Ground Zero video impression