All of us, of course, at least once watched films about romantic gangsters of the 1920s and 1930s, for example, Once Upon a Time in America or The Godfather. It was in those years, during the Prohibition, that the concept of bootlegging arose. This is falsification (illegal production), smuggling of alcohol, then prohibited by law. The very word "bootlegger" (bootlegger - in English) in slang means: underground merchant, smuggler. In a broad sense - a person who sells (and produces) illegal goods.
History
In the United States in the twenties, gangsters rallied against the “prohibition”, who organized the production, delivery and sale of illegal alcohol, in fact, bootlegging was their business. This led to a total “mutual responsibility” in institutions such as brothels, brothels, shops, cafes, restaurants - where they illegally sold alcoholic beverages. Some racketeers allegedly protected from others, charging a certain "tribute" from almost every businessman. Little by little, the drug trade began to develop. The mafia has filled everything with itself. Gangsters staged a bloody showdown among themselves, in front of everyone's eyes killing each other for spheres of influence. A mafia magnificent funeral became a kind of "decoration" of the streets of many cities.
The most famous mafia bootleggers
Al Capone. The Chicago American gangster who wielded in the 20-30s, at the time of the Prohibition. He acted on a large scale under the guise of the furniture business. He was engaged in gambling, bootlegging, pimping. This gangster is also known by the nickname "Scarface."
Another grandiose mafia from those times was the father of the 35th president of the United States, Joseph Kennedy, who, in addition to raising his son, the future president, was also engaged in bootlegging!
"Machine Gun George" - organized the production and marketing of illegal alcohol in America of the 30s.
Today
Modern bootlegging is a much broader concept. This includes not only prohibited types of trade and production (alcohol or other products), but also “pirated” activities. What does this mean? Illegal copying of information (unlicensed discs, for example). And in the Internet resources the concepts of intellectual property and copyright, a strategy for the exchange of information between people are constantly being revised. So the good idea of free access to any files sometimes leads to disastrous results and litigation.
And with regard to alcoholic counterfeit, there is a constant and implacable struggle of the state against bootleggers.