As any number of documentaries, books, etc. point out, blacks in America were into gambling and other forms of "organized crime" going way back to the turn of the century. Yes, Madam Queen and Bumpy Johnson were real life black gangsters in Harlem. In fact, they were targeted by Dutch Schultz for takeover. Of course, as even the Godfather novel points out, back then a black person could not bribe police, etc. So, it was difficult for black gangsters to work as effectively as they could or expand outside of heavily populated black areas. Even today black gangsters have a tough time.