Prohibition
Throughout history, the need and presence of governing forces have always existed. Governments, by the use of legislation, make choices in the best interest of the people. The Nineteenth Century was popular for the great amounts of alcohol that the average person consumed. Such popularity spawned and entire social movement against alcohol. This movement was called the Noble Experiment. Although it failed to directly ban alcohol, the movement contributed by electing many reformers who would change the face of America in the early Twentieth Century. In 1920, the Eighteenth Amendment of the Constitution prohibited the use and sale of alcohol in the United States. Although it was created with good intentions, the law provided an opportunity for organized crime families to come into power.
The temperance and reform movements of the late Nineteenth Century and early Twentieth Century were partitioned into many small groups. The two most influential groups; however, were the Anti-Saloon League and the Women’s Christian Temperance Union. Women at this time were unhappy because men were drinking extremely too much, and women could legally do nothing about it. Since women at this time could not file for divorce, they had no other choice but to try get rid of alcohol altogether (Blocker 10-13). This was not only the first major women’s movement in history (Cayton 2139), but also one of the largest nonviolent movements of the modern world (Behr 35-36). Other than World War I, prohibition was the biggest issue in the country. As prohibition approached, people stored their liquor in large quantities in warehouses or banks. Judge John Knox of New York put an end to this by decreeing that any alcohol stored outside of one’s home was unlawful and therefore subject to seizure (Blocker 21-24). Few things could have caused such a panic as this did. People rushed to return their liquor home by any means possible. The official date of prohibition was growing near and times were tense. Bootleggers found refuge in the Bahamas where they were able to distill large amounts of alcohol and sell it for good prices. Many distillers acquired large stocks immediately before prohibition by doing this (Behr 79-81).
January 16, 1920, the night before prohibition became active, did not fulfi...
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The Twenty-first Amendment repealed prohibition in 1932, only twelve years since its unpopular installation in 1920 (Cayton 2140). In this case, the people’s will to have alcohol was greater that the government’s ability to enforce a law against it. Ideally, a society should be governed without being controlled.
Works Cited
Behr, Edward. Thirteen Years that Changed America. Boston: Arcade Publishers, 1996.
Blocker, Jack S. American Temperance Movements: Cycles of Reform. Boston:
Twayne Publishers, 1989.
Cayton, Mary Kupiec, et. al. “The Second Campaign Against Liquor and the Noble
Experiment.” Encyclopedia of American Social History. New York: Smith
Publishers, 1985.
Coffey, Thomas M. The Long Thirst: Prohibition in America. New York: Norton, 1975.
Johnson, George E. “Al Capone.” Courtroom Television Network LLC. Sept. 19, 2002.
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Jones, Chris. “Economic and Social Effects of Prohibition.” Nov. 26, 2001. Got
Essays? Sept. 19, 2002. .
Lucas, Eileen. The Eighteenth and Twenty-first Amendments: Alcohol, Prohibition, and
Repeal. Springfield, NJ: Enslow Publishers, 1998.
During the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, many saw alcohol as a cause of instability among communities. To counteract the effects of alcohol on American society, The Temperance Movement, Prohibition Party and many others sought to enact anti-liquor laws that would prohibit the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol. On January 19, 1920, the Eighteenth Amendment had taken effect and a nationwide ban on alcohol was enacted. This was thought of as a solution to the many problems that America had at the time, but it only made matters worse. The American society had been greatly affected by the Eighteenth Amendment in many negative aspects such as increasing crime and violence, worsening the economy, and much more.
On Jan. 17, 1920, America went completely dry. The 18th Amendment of the United States Constitution had been ratified a year earlier, banning “the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors” within the United States and its territories. This began the era of Prohibition, a 14-year time period of law-breaking unlike any other in our country’s history fueled by bootleggers, gangs, speak easies and mafias. The 18th Amendment was a rarity in that it limited the rights of the individual rather than the activities of the government, thereby guaranteeing an unfavorable reception and reaction. “Last Call” The Rise and Fall of Prohibition was written by Daniel Okrent and published in May 2010 and is a historical explanation of the Prohibition era. Prohibition through the 18th Amendment holds the distinction of being the only constitutional amendment ever to be repealed. This fact leads one to ask: How did this even occur? Why would Americans sacrifice their precious right to drink?
Enacting prohibition in a culture so immersed in alcohol as America was not easy. American had long been a nation of strong social drinkers with a strong feeling towards personal freedom. As Okrent remarks, “George Washington had a still on his farm. James Madison downed a pint of whiskey a day”. This was an era when drinking liquor on ships was far safer than the stale scummy water aboard, and it was common fo...
The real reason the Prohibition Act was passed is not because the Legislation had voted for it, but rather the large amount of supporters it had. 33 out of 48 states had already passed the laws within 1920. The direct support was mainly coming from the South, which the number grew from 1820’s to 1840’s. These groups mainly campaigned against the outcome of drinking alcohol. Woman’s groups were behind many temperance movements for they were targets of abuse due to drunken husbands. Many times drinking was blamed upon the economics and the changes it has undergone.
In 1920, a leading Prohibitionist declared in Congress that “There is as much chance of repealing the Eighteenth Amendment as there is for a hummingbird to fly to the planet Mars with the Washington Monument tied to its tail.” 13 years later, after the outbreak of the Great Depression this is exactly what happened? However, the main reason lies not with the Depression itself; this was merely the catalyst for its repeal. The simple fact the prohibition did not achieve its aims was the main cause of the passing of the Twenty-first Amendment, bringing about other factors which pushed the anti-Prohibition movement forwards.
The Prohibition or the Eighteenth Amendment was a huge failure for a law in 1920. There were many factors that led to its downfall that included illegal means, rise of gangsters, and the Twenty- First Amendment. Despite the Prohibition, it did not stop the people from drinking it and accessing it through thousands of speakeasies. It became a most lucrative business for criminals that led to dangerous competition. In 1933, the failed amendment was repealed and most people rejoiced that alcohol was legal again. The Eighteenth Amendment was an experiment that went horribly wrong and did absolutely nothing to bring any positive change. This was proof “that you don’t have to be drunk to come up with a really, really, bad idea.” (Carlson. 141)
Aaron, Paul and Musto, David, Temperance and Prohibition in America: A Historical Overview. In: Moore, Mark H., and Gerstain, Dean R. (eds) Alcohol and Public Policy: Beyond the Shadow of Prohibition. Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 1981. Pp 127-181.
“Prohibition did not achieve its goals. Instead, it added to the problems it was intended to solve.” On 16th January 1920, one of the most common personal habits and customs of American society came to a halt. The eighteenth amendment was implemented, making all importing, exporting, transporting, selling and manufacturing of intoxicating liquors absolutely prohibited. This law was created in the hope of achieving the reduction of alcohol consumption, which in turn would reduce: crime, poverty, death rates, and improve both the economy, and the quality of life for all Americans. These goals were far from achieved. The prohibition amendment of the 1920's was ineffective because it was unenforceable. Instead, it caused various social problems such as: the explosive growth of organized crime, increased liquor consumption, massive murder rates and corruption among city officials. Prohibition also hurt the economy because the government wasn’t collecting taxes on the multi-billion dollar a year industry.
Even before the 18th Amendment went into effect in January of 1920, many Americans were in support of Prohibition. Supporters wanted America to be a healthier, safer, and more moral country. Alcohol was causing many problems around the United States. Some people were getting drunk on the job, causing accidents. Others were abusive towards their families. Many people began to realize the affects that alcohol was causing to their country. They believed that enforcing a law that would prohibit the manufacturing, transportation, and selling of alcohol would solve many of these problems by making it unavailable.
The beginning of the 19th century marked the ongoing social debate of the ban of alcohol and alcohol consumption. The period following the American Revolution led to many Americans drinking alcohol to excess. However, the Temperance Movement was created to solve this growing problem. Led by a group of Christian women, the movement was created to moderate mens’ drinking habitats thus protecting domestic home life. But by the 1820s the movement started to advocate for the total abstinence of all alcohol; that is to urge people to stop drinking completely. The movement was also influential in passing laws that prohibited the sale of liquor in several states.
Prohibition originated in the nineteenth century but fully gained recognition in the twentieth century. The Prohibition was originally known as the Temperance Movement. In the 1820s and 1830s, a wave of religious revivalism developed in the United States, leading to increased calls for temperance, as well as other reform movements such as the abolition of slavery (“Prohibition”). These reforms were often led by middle class women. The abolition of slavery became a more important topic of debate until after the Civil War. By the turn of the century, temperance societies were a common thing throughout the communities in the United States (“Prohibition”). Women advocated the unity of the family, and they believed alcohol prevented such a thing. Drunken husbands only brought about negativity to the home, and women could not support that behavior. Suffragists, in their pursuit for voting rights, also sought to eliminate alcohol from the home. Small-scale legislation had been passed in several states, but no national laws had been enacted. On January 29, 1919, the Eighteenth Amendment was ratified by Congress; it banned t...
By the turn of the century, temperance societies were a common fixture in communities across the United States. Women played a strong role in the temperance movement, as alcohol was seen as a destructive force in families and marriages. In 1906, a new wave of attacks began on the sale of liquor, led by the Anti-Saloon League (established in 1893) and driven by a reaction to urban growth, as well as the rise of evangelical Protestantism and its view of saloon culture as corrupt and ungodly. In addition, many factory owners supported prohibition in their desire to prevent accidents and increase the efficiency of their workers in an era of increased industrial production and extended working hours. (History.com Staff)
The Prohibition Amendment, which took effect on January 16, 1920, outlawed the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcohol in the United States and its territories, until its repeal on December 5, 1933. Today, Prohibition is often referred to as the “Noble Experiment” because it was created to reduce the adverse effects that alcohol had on families and society. Excessive consumption of alcohol, primarily by men, often resulted in domestic violence, poor work performance, and wasteful spending of wages on alcohol, which were needed to support families. Although the Prohibition Amendment did decrease alcohol-related consequences, ultimately this legislation should not have been enacted because it led to more organized crime and an increase of economic problems.
Although the temperance movement was concerned with the habitual drunk, its primary goal was total abstinence and the elimination of liquor. With the ratification of the 18th Amendment to the Constitution, the well-organized and powerful political organizations, utilizing no holds barred political tactics, successfully accomplished their goal. Prohibition became the law of the land on January 16, 1920; the manufacturing, importation, and sale of alcohol was no longer legal in the United States. Through prohibition, America embarked on what became labeled “the Nobel Experiment.” However, instead of having social redeeming values as ordained, prohibition had the opposite effect of its intended purpose, becoming a catastrophic failure.
Prohibition in the United States lasted about 14 years from 1920 to 1933. “Prohibition was the period in United States history in which the manufacture, sale, and transportation of intoxicating liquors was outlawed.” . Intoxicating liquors were beginning to ruin the lives of some Americans and it became banned. “Prohibition, members of the Temperance movement urged, would stop husbands from spending all the family income on alcohol and prevent accidents in the workplace caused by workers who drank during lunch” . Alcohol was beginning to tear families apart and some wanted to finally outlaw all of the alcohol which would make life easier. In the beginning organizations pushed moderation, but after some decades the organizations’ focus’ turned into the idea of complete prohibition . Although the idea of total prohibition was far-fetched it eventually began. The 18th amendment brought about complete prohibition to all of the United States, with this amendment prohibition in the United States was finally established.