The Real Godfather of Harlem Was A Queen

She walked into a Harlem courtroom in nineteen thirty wearing diamonds and fury. The judge expected fear. Stephanie St. Clair delivered a threat that made the entire room freeze. This is the story they erased. Before Bumpy Johnson became a legend, he worked for a woman who built an empire the Italian mob couldn't break. Stephanie St. Clair controlled Harlem's numbers racket when women weren't even allowed to vote in most of the country. She went to war with Dutch Schultz. She bought off police captains. And when the mafia came for her territory, she didn't negotiate. She called Bumpy. Discover the partnership that inverted every rule of organized crime. The queen who needed an enforcer, not a boss. The legend who's been written out of every godfather story. Historical note: Some dialogue and scenes have been reconstructed based on court records, contemporary newspaper accounts, and documented historical events. This documentary presents the most accurate available picture of Stephanie St. Clair's life and her partnership with Bumpy Johnson. 📚 Sources & Further Reading: → Queen of the Numbers: Stephanie St. Clair (Historical Biographies) https://www.blackpast.org → Harlem Godfather: The Rap on My Husband, Ellsworth "Bumpy" Johnson (Mayme Johnson) https://www.amazon.com/Harlem-Godfather-Husband-Ellsworth-Johnson/dp/0967602858 → Playing the Numbers: Gambling in Harlem Between the Wars (Shane White, et al) https://www.amazon.com/Playing-Numbers-Gambling-Harlem-between/dp/0674050568 → Harlem: The Unmaking of a Ghetto (Camilo José Vergara)