Prohibition

One of the most influential temperance movements was the women's Christian Temperance union. It was a group of women who wanted a ban on alcohol. These women convinced congress to pass the Volstead Act to enforce the new prohibition on alcohol. In the United States, Prohibition was also known as the Noble Experiment. This time period was from 1920 to around 1933. It was the time when the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol were banned nationally and the Eighteenth amendment was created in order to stop this. Under pressure from temperance movement, the senate proposed the Eighteenth Amendment on December 18, 1917. It was approved by 36 states, and was ratified on January 16, 1919 and came into play on January 16, 1920. ( book source )

The Eighteenth Amendment took away license to do business from the brewers, distillers, and the wholesale sellers of alcoholic beverages. The leaders of the prohibition movement were shocked at the drinking behavior of people, and they were concerned that the drinking among sectors of the population would cause more immigration to the U.S from Europe.

Many Americans hoped the ban on alcohol would improve American life. Alcoholism in fact did decline during the noble experiment but in the end it did not work. There were many reasons why prohibition failed. One of the main reasons that people were trying to get across was that they thought prohibition would be good for mankind. Many hoped that Prohibition would eliminate all corruptions instead; Prohibition itself became a source of corruption. A reason why it failed was because many politicians and even policemen took bribes from people in order to get away with smuggling alcohol. Everyone had to get their alcohol and because of this it caused corruption everywhere.

Some people manufactured their own alcohol and others smuggled it in from other places. It was said that some smugglers were called bootleggers because they hid the alcohol in their boots. Illegal bars called speak- easies opened in almost every city and town. To enforce the ban, the government sent out men to shut down the bars and to stop smugglers. Speakeasies provided an entertaining atmosphere. People ate and drank and this was said to be the first time that men and women drank together. They called them speakies because you needed to speak the password to enter.( book source )


Many people during the prohibition time weren’t able to resist a drink of whiskey or wine. If someone had been caught smuggling a drink in public, they would have to pay a major fine. If they were unable to pay the price of what they did, then they would be taken to a jail cell for six months or until they could pay the fine. There became so many prohibition cases in court that it became chaotic. The results of prohibition were that innocent people suffered, organized crime grew, the police, courts, and politicians became corrupt and disrespect for the law increased dramatically.

During the Noble experiment there was an increase in crimes. Every speak-easy needed a way to get a hold of alcohol and because of this crime became a big business. As time went on many Americans began to believe that Prohibition was a mistake. The ban may have reduced drinking but it never fully stopped it. As time went on more and more Americans began to realize that Prohibition may have been a mistake. Many people also began to think that prohibition was undermining the respect for the law. Finally in 1933 President, F.D. Roosevelt was elected, and the Congress passed the 21st Amendment, which would repeal the 18Th Amendment. The noble experiment then came to an end.

I think one of the reasons why prohibition got passed was because women wanted their lives to be safer and they wanted to put an end to abuse. I understand what they wanted but I do not agree with the decision because no matter what law you pass or no matter what you say, no one will ever be able to fix major problems like that because not everyone follows the laws. I think that Prohibition didn't help but in fact make things worse. The main problem of prohibition was that those who wanted it passed didn't really think of the implication of it. They only saw the good in it, but they never prepared for the bad things that would come from it. I think people were already freaked out about the economy and the influenza flu that had taken the lives of millions of people, that they wanted to pass a law that would improve life and hopefully save lives.