How Prohibition Transformed American Organized Crime

This episode examines how the Eighteenth Amendment turned small street gangs into national bootlegging syndicates, detailing the rise of Chicago’s Outfit and New York’s Five Families, the role of political machines, labor racketeering, and early federal investigations that reshaped organized crime. We trace the shift from neighborhood crime to corporate criminal syndicates and explore why this era redefined power, money, and law‑enforcement strategy across the United States. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices