Alcohol Prohibition

From SSDPedia

Alcohol Prohibition lasted from 1920 to 1933. The intention was to reduce the consumption of alcohol by eliminating businesses that manufactured, distributed and sold it. When talking about Alcohol Prohibition, many think of gangsters, bootleggers, and speakeasies. Luckily by 1933 it ended as the result of the public’s annoyance of the law and the ever-increasing enforcement nightmare.

[edit] History

The 18th Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified by 36 states on January 16, 1919, and took affect one year later, beginning the era of prohibition.

Below is the first section of the article:

“After one year from the ratification of this article 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.”

Three months before the 18th Amendment was to take effect, the Volstead Act, otherwise known as the National Prohibition Act of 1919, was passed and gave power to the “Commissioner of Internal Revenue, his assistants, agents, and inspectors” to enforce the 18th Amendment.

In the first year of enforcement (1920), Congress appropriated $6,350,000. By 1923, the secretary of treasury was asking for $28,500,000 and a few years later, it was estimated that at least $300,000,000 would be needed.

[edit] Ending Prohibition

Prohibition was never very popular with the public, though the propaganda was everywhere, and said otherwise. Yet the main reason why Prohibition began it's steady fall from grace was the logistical nightmare that ensued. Enforcement of the 18th Amendment was almost impossible. There was not enough law enforcement officers to stop the illegal operations, and many of those who were supposed to try to stop these operations were themselves corrupt.

President Roosevelt's administration had a two-step program in order to end Alcohol Prohibition. The first step was to make changes to the Volstead Act, which legalized beer and wine with alcohol content up to 3.2% alc/vol. Once this step was complete, the United States congress had to repeal the 18th Amendment. The only way to do this, was to pass another Amendment to the Constitution. By passing the 21st Amendment, the 18th was repealed, and Alcohol Prohibition had ended.

Finally, on December 5, 1933 the nationwide prohibition was over.

[edit] Alcohol Prohibition Today

For many people prohibition ended in 1933 with the 21st Amendment, but in truth prohibition did not end, it just switched targets. Every state maintained youth prohibition by imposing drinking ages to limit alcohol purchase and consumption by young people. In most cases states set the law at the current age of majority, 21. In the 1970's, due to the lowering of the age of majority and voting age to 18, many states lowered their drinking ages as well. This was changed in 1984 with the passage of the National Minimum Drinking Age Act which forced all states (by threatening to withhold highway funds) to raise their drinking ages back to 21. The alcohol prohibition faced by youth under 21 is strikingly similar to prohibition during the 1920's.