United States History: 1912 to 1941 Essentials by William Turner

Author:William Turner
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780738671512
Publisher: Research & Education Association
Published: 2012-11-20T16:00:00+00:00

5.3.4 Prohibition

The Eighteenth Amendment which prohibited the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors took effect in January 1920. It was implemented by the Volstead Act of October 1919 which defined intoxicating beverages as containing one-half of one percent alcohol by volume and imposed criminal penalties for violations. Many states had authorized the sale of light beer, believing that it was not covered by the amendment, but Anti-Saloon League lobbyists pushed through the Volstead Act. Many historians believe that prohibition of hard liquor might have been successful if light wine and beer had been allowed. As things turned out, the inexpensive light beverages were less available while expensive illegal hard liquor was readily available. Prohibition was enforceable only if many people in the society accepted and supported it. Enforcement was reasonably effective in some rural southern and midwestern states which had been dry before the amendment. In urban areas where both foreign-born and native citizens often believed that their liberty had been infringed upon, neither the public nor their elected officials were interested in enforcement. Speakeasies, supposedly secret bars operated by bootleggers, replaced the saloons. Smuggled liquor flowed across the boundaries and coastlines of the nation, and the manufacture of “bathtub gin” and similar beverages was undertaken by thousands. Organized crime, which previously had been involved mainly with prostitution and gambling, grew tremendously to meet the demand. Al Capone of Chicago was perhaps the most famous of the bootlegging gangsters. The automobile was used both to transport liquor and to take customers to speakeasies. Women, who had not gone to saloons in the pre-prohibition period, frequented speakeasies and began to drink in public. By the mid-twenties, the nation was badly divided on the prohibition issue. Support continued from rural areas and almost all Republican office-holders. The Democrats divided between the urban northerners who advocated repeal, and rural, especially southern, Democrats who supported prohibition. Some people who originally favored prohibition changed their views because of the public hypocrisy and criminal activity which it caused.

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