The Decriminalization Of Prohibition

Movements for change have existed throughout history and have different motives. The Prohibition movement in the early nineteen hundreds is started a small group of women and religious leaders. The motive for this movement is to ban the sale and consumption of alcohol. As the movement grew, the group influenced government policy in favor for their issue. Positive intentions included the removal of alcohol from medicine, to relieve addiction. On the other hand, women supported this cause to better their life, while multiple theorist believing alcohol is detrimental to politics. This movement helped inspire others and mold the roles of men and women while making progress. Prohibition is represented to be a success, since it reveals how a belief by a few can grow and have a positive intention.

Like the alcohol Prohibition in the 1920s, which was intended to banish certain substances from society, recent drug prohibition has yielded the same results. For years, the United States drug policy has taken the approach of detaining and arresting anyone who can be connected with illegal drugs. The failures of prohibition are painfully obvious: unnecessary deaths, severe violence, wasted money, soiled opportunities. The ‘war on drugs’ remains the greatest violation and threat to our civil liberties and the preservation of the Bill of Rights. Since the upswing of illicit drug use in the 1960’s, the presidents of the United States have repeatedly produced policies that deem highly ineffective. An increase in presidential power is needed to

William H. Stayton, the founder and leader of the Association Against the Prohibition Amendment, argued that prohibition was a failure (Dudley 94). John Gordon Cooper, a previous railroad worker, believed that prohibition was a success (Dudley 93). Prohibition was a failure because drinking increased and enforcement was failing.

Between 1900 and 1913 more Americans began to drink more and more alcohol with the production of beer jumping from 1.2 million to 2 billion gallons; three times more alcohol than the average American drinks now.1 Prohibition was a movement sparked by women since women thought they were the ones who suffered the most from the cause of alcohol and women though that alcohol was a threat to a happy family. Women wanted to pass prohibition because many men would go to saloons and go home and be abusive towards their wives and children. Women and other groups eventually got 46 of the 48 states to ratify the 18th amendment on January 16, 1919.2 The 18th amendment on article one says, "...the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors within, the importation thereof into, or the exportation thereof from the United States and all territory subject to the jurisdiction thereof for beverage purposes is hereby prohibited."3 The first article on the 18th amendment is saying that the sale, making, or even bringing liquor into the United States or any of the United States' territory will now be illegal. Prohibition began to show its weakness right away when the United Sates government did not show much support. After the first year of prohibition the American people started to show less support and even led to organized crime. In 1933, the United States Constitution was amended to repeal the 18th amendment in the form of the 21st amendment.4 Even

went up and more people were homeless and prisons became full. The courts and prisons

Imagine that you’re having a gathering or party. Everything is ready to go and then you remember that the 18th amendment prohibits you from buying liquor/alcohol. The party was supposed to be a blast, but how can you have a blast without alcohol or liquor. Prohibition was the 18th amendment. It stated that it was illegal to manufacture, transport, and sell alcoholic beverages in the United States. The Volstead Act added to the 18th amendment almost 9 months after. It added that when the 18th amendment went to affect, it was against the law to barter, import, export, deliver, furnish, or posses intoxicating liquor. Of course, drinking/usage was also banned, except for authorized purposes. Then it was repealed. It was the first, and only amendment in U.S history to be revoked.

The 18th amendment was ratified by congress on January 16, 1919 in which the selling and distribution of “intoxicating liquors” was banned. That was the start of what many called the dry decade in the United States. Norman H. Clark’s Deliver Us from Evil: An Interpretation of American Prohibition illustrates the struggles to make the dry decade possible and the consequences that followed it. The 235 page text describes how the Anti-Saloon League was determined to make prohibition possible and the struggles they had to overcome. As well as what directly followed once it was a reality.

The 18th Amendment, prohibiting the “manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors,” was passed on January 16, 1919. Exactly a year later, it took effect and the United States was officially a dry country (Finding). There are numerous reasons why prohibition of drugs and alcohol is a good aspects but there are also bad aspects of this amendment. Some benefits of Prohibition include: cutting down numbers of consumers, less distribution, and a greater look on American society. The bad things about Prohibition includes: bootlegging , illegal consumption, and enforcement by law. Does the prohibition or legalization of drugs or alcohol prove to either promote or hinder the advancement of society? Prohibition started due to a movement

Originally, this issue started in 1920, when Congress attempted to ban the production, consumption, and sales of alcohol during the Prohibition Era. The Prohibition was created to decrease crime rates, the number of prisoners in prison, and purify America. However, it did the opposite and created more serious organized crimes, pushed prisons to a breaking point, and created corrupt public officials. Fortunately, for those over the age of 21, the government created the Twenty-fifth Amendment to repeal the Eighteenth Amendment to make alcohol legal again. Prohibition has made a comeback by targeting the young, who have historically little economic and political influence. Unfortunately, 18-20-year-olds cannot stick up for themselves in Congress

Uruguay became the first country in the world to fully legalize marijuana in 2013. By legalizing cannabis, this country became the first nation in the world to break the International Convention on Drug Control, and to regulate the production, sale and consumption of marijuana (Graham, 2014).The law allowed the registered users to grow cannabis at home, belong to a cannabis social club, or acquire government-regulated cannabis through licensed pharmacies. The goal of this law was to reduce the harm caused by illegal marketing and to provide education and chances of prevention. All the users are registered with the state through the Institute for the Control and Regulation of Cannabis (IRCCA). Even though cannabis has been decriminalized,

As a result of Prohibition, the advancements of industrialization within the alcoholic beverage industry were essentially reversed. Large-scale alcohol producers were shut down, for the most part, and some individual citizens took it upon themselves to produce alcohol illegally, essentially reversing the efficiency of mass-producing and retailing alcoholic beverages. Closing the country's manufacturing plants and taverns also resulted in an economic downturn for the industry. While the Eighteenth Amendment did not have this effect on the industry due to its failure to define an "intoxicating" beverage, the Volstead Act's definition of 0.5% or more alcohol by volume shut down the brewers, who expected to continue to produce beer of moderate

With 23 states having already legalized the use of Cannabis for either recreational use or purely for medical use, California will soon jump on the wagon as well as a majority of Americans are in favor of decriminalizing cannabis. Not only is the prohibition of Cannabis very expensive but it takes police attention away from real crimes. The Times explains, “Each year, enforcing laws on possession costs more than $3.6 billion, according to the American Civil Liberties Union,” Not only would decriminalizing Cannabis alleviate unnecessary expenses but also clear up prison space for those who actually deserve to be in jail. Cannabis can not only help alleviate things such as anxiety, and muscle spasms but it also helps with more serious issues

In 2013 there was over a hundred thousand drug related crimes recorded in Canada. Some countries around the world, such as the Netherlands, have loosened their restrictions on recreational drug use in an attempt to lower crime rates in their nation. The current law in Canada strictly prohibits the use and distribution of all recreational drugs. Many people, however, question if this is the best way to regulate drugs. Some would argue that legalizing drugs would create an economic opportunity for the government, reduce crime, reduce drug illnesses and fatalities, and give citizens their justified rights. Thus, the government should legalize recreational drugs to be consumed and distributed in the same way as alcohol.

35 million Americans use marijuana on a monthly basis, while at least 78 million Americans use at some point according to a survey by Yahoo News/Marist College (Kate); however, marijuana is an illegal drug in most of The United States. Marijuana has been outlawed, and the potential benefits from legalization outweigh the detriments of criminalization. Marijuana can be decriminalized by affecting the general consensus of the public through social media and removing cannabis from Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act.