18th Amendment Research Paper

“For those Americans who did not want to go to the effort of making their own liquor, an army of bootleggers, moonshiners, and rumrunners was available to supply the nation with all the booze its citizens could drink” (Hanson). Americans could just buy alcohol from bootleggers, moonshiners, and rumrunners if they did not want to make it themselves because they could find an alcohol seller anywhere. “The Eighteenth Amendment was intended to reduce drinking by abolishing the businesses that made and sold alcohol: breweries, distillers, winemakers, wholesale sellers, and retail establishments such as saloons” (Hanson). The Eighteenth Amendment was made to stop alcohol from getting on the streets but it did no use so they got rid of the Eighteenth Amendment. The temperance movement and the prohibition on alcohol helped stop most of the drinking in the United States of America.

The prohibition caused much controversy in the 1920’s. The 18th amendment was passed on Jan 16, 1920, it said in Title II, Section 3 the National Prohibition Act states that "No person shall on or after the date when the 18th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States goes into effect, manufacture, sell, barter, transport, import, export, deliver, furnish or possess any intoxicating liquor except as authorized in this act." (United States constitution). The Prohibition opened up many big business opportunities in the illegal marketing of alcohol. The people who took advantage of this opportunity were known as “Bootleggers”. With the enactment of this law organized crime was established, allowing men such as Al Capone to capitalize

The Prohibition Era was a period of time when the entire nation was expected to be alcohol-free, or “dry”. In January 1919, prohibitionists achieved the ratification of the eighteenth amendment to the constitution, “forbidding the manufacture, transportation, and sale of intoxicating liquors.” The activists in the Temperance Movement had lobbied and pushed for this ratification for decades. Temperance activists consisted of women, church members, and employers. The main concern was centered around the idea that liquor made alcoholics and irresponsible people. The widespread support for the liquor ban was reflected in its approval by more

In 1920, the United States entered a new stage in its life, the Era of Prohibition. However, flaws in the planning, execution, and administration caused this noble idea to vacillate unquestionably. However, men who were willing to break the law were the ones that were able to build a lucrative life for themselves; one such man was Alphonse Capone. However, honest men such as Elliot Ness fought adamantly to defend their morals, beliefs, and the law of the land. Nevertheless, Capone was a man who took advantage of his time and lived the life of the American Dream: going from rags to riches. However, it was this very same opulence that caused his downfall and incarceration. The tireless efforts of Elliot Ness eventually paid off

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.

Economic desperation had no small part in advocacy for repeal of the 18th Amendment. Conservatives who pushed for prohibition in the start of the prohibition movement. This included American farmers who pushed for prohibition and now pushed for repeal because of the negative economic effects on agriculture. Before the 1920’s amendment of the Volstead Act, 14% of federal, state, and local tax revenues were derived from profits of the alcohol industry.

The Eighteenth Amendment, created during President Wilson Era, prohibited the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcohol. The Eighteenth Amendment was created because of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) that said that drinking alcohol causes a lot of problems in the society, but the WCTU couldn't establish any law for the prohibition of alcohol. So the Anti-Saloon League (ASL) was created to advance the ideas of the WCTU. The ASL convinced politicians to support the Women’s Christian Temperance Union using pressure politics. Finally, on January 17th, 1920, Eighteenth Amendment was created to prohibit the commerce of alcohol. With this Amendment, the quantity of deaths, suicides, traffic accidents, family arguments, aggression

Plus bootleg alcoholic beverages like beer and whisky were created, the whole drinking scene was slowly starting to look like its former self. The most confusing statistic is that before prohibition there were less speakeasies then there were during prohibition. So therefore the introduction of prohibition had actually increased America's alcohol intake rate. When Prohibition started it opened up an opportunity for local gangsters to make some money and then expand their business and many of them took this opportunity. Probably the most famous of all the gangsters was called Al Capone.

People continued to drink, sell, buy, and transport alcohol (possibly even more than before prohibition got underway) they were just doing it in secret now. In some places, the state government could not ignore the amount of smuggling going on near the coasts and borders. It was impossible to patrol the thousand mile borders and bootleggers would maintain huge fleets of trucks and cars going through Mexico and Canada. In New York and New Jersey there were so many bootleggers that a regulation was passed stating as long as smugglers stayed outside a 3-mile limit the government would not interfere with their illegal actions. So many people were already smuggling and it was concluded that there was no point in having alcohol banned when everyone didn’t abide by the law anyways

Bootlegging by its definition is the illegal production or distribution of liquor, and since it wasn’t illegal to consume alcohol, according to the 18th amendment, bootleggers had plenty of people buying their products. The best place to sell these goods were called speakeasies. These establishments began opening at the beginning of prohibition, they illegally sold alcohol at secret locations

The passage of the 18th Amendment is an amendment which has intrigued me as to why. In the late 1800s there was a growing movement amongst religious groups who considered alcohol a threat to the country. Before the 18th Amendment was passed almost half of the states had passed prohibition. The Women’s Christian Temperance Union and then the Anti-Saloon League fought to outlaw alcohol from 1873 until the 18th Amendment was passed. This movement created some colorful characters including Carrie Nation breaking windows and kegs with a hatchet. (staff, 18th and 21st Amendments, 2016)

From 1920 to 1933, it was estimated that over 22,000 gallons of bootlegged liquor made its way into Washington, D.C. for Congress members every week. George L. Cassiday, Congress's alcoholic supplier, claims that four out of five members of Congress drank (Roller). In 1920, the 18th amendment was passed banning the brewing, transporting, and selling of all alcoholic beverages. Forty-six states ratified this amendment. Prohibition was encouraged by temperance groups during the 1900's who believed the consumption of alcohol caused recklessness, increased crime rates, social problems, overflowing in prisons, and need for welfare. The 18th amendment is still relevant today because it shows how this law created such chaos. It was pushed by temperance

“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,

The 18th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution banned the manufacture, transportation, and sale of intoxicating liquors. This ushered a period in the American history. This was known as Prohibition. Prohibition was difficult to force during the first decade of the 20th century. Bootlegging is the illegal production and sale of liquor. The increase of bootlegging, speakeasies, and the accompanying rise in gang violence and other crimes led to waning support for Prohibition. In 1933, the Congress had adopted a resolution. They proposed a 21st Amendment to the Constitution, which would repeal the 18th Amendment. The prohibition era came to a close by the end of that year.

In order to address the aftermath of the 18th amendment, the enforcement of it must also be addressed. The National Prohibition Act, or more commonly known as the Volstead Act, is described as “An act to prohibit intoxicating beverages, and to regulate the manufacture, production, use, and sale of high-proof spirits for other than beverage purposes, and to insure an ample supply of alcohol and promote its use in scientific research and in the development of fuel, dye, and other lawful industries” (Volstead Act). This act was over 25