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Prohibition in the United States was a measure designed to reduce drinking by eliminating the businesses that manufactured, distributed, and sold alcoholic beverages. The Eighteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution took away license to do business from the brewers, distillers, vintners, and the wholesale and retail sellers of alcoholic beverages. The leaders of the prohibition movement were alarmed at the drinking behavior of Americans, and they were concerned that there was a culture of drink among some sectors of the population that, with continuing immigration from Europe, was spreading.
What a mistake that was all it did was create an underground industry making moonshine. 😛 Some things people will put up with but leave the booze alone.
All Prohibtion did was prove that the Constitution in particular and the Feds in general are poor instruments for social engineering.
Prohibition created a market for organized crime syndicates and crooked cops. Even the high society folks had to take their social activities underground just to have a social drink or party. Prohibition was the pinnacle of the Christian morality movements that began in the 1740’s and again in the 1820’s-1840’s. America has always been a more socially conservative society as compared to the Europeans especially. I believe it has something to do with America being the frontier of human civilization, but my professors would frown at the frontier thesis since they consider Frederick Jackson Turner’s thesis outdated these days. 🙄
I wonder where Prohibition got its underlying support – as in, which states was it popular in? Was there a Northern/Southern split in feelings toward it?
I'm not sure which states voted for it and where the support was strongest, but I do know that 23 of the 48 sates had some sort of anti saloon law in effect at the time prohibition went in to effect. So I think the support was pretty wide spread, at least at first, it seemed to erode after the first few years.
Crime and punishment: “How dry we ain't”Some illustrations from Time magazine about prohibition (and many more amazing topics)I particularly like the Carrie A. Nation cartoonhttp://www.life.com/gallery/37542/prohibition-how-dry-we-aint#index/0
