Bangladesh, Dec. 11 -- For decades, Italys sprawling criminal syndicates – from Sicilys Cosa Nostra to Calabrias Ndrangheta – have survived not just through violence and money, but through something even more powerful: the family bond. The mafias most enduring strength lies in its ability to mold each generation from childhood, reproducing its hierarchies and loyalties across bloodlines. But today, a growing number of Italian lawmakers, prosecutors, activists, and social workers are trying to strike at this very core of organized crime, launching a controversial and unprecedented campaign to free children and mothers from mafia control.

At the center of this effort is Claudia Caramanna, head of Palermos juvenile prosecutors o...