1920's Social Changes

On January 16, 1920, the 18th amendment was passed stating alcohol was illegal creating multiple problems in the United States. Although Prohibition seemed like a good idea at first, representing good health and morality, prohibition soon led to organized crime and gangs. Speakeasies, run by gangs and bootleggers, sold illegal and home-made alcohol. Bootleggers, getting their names from people soring alcohol in false legs, would run bars or taverns hidden from police. Organized crime grew and the gangs fought for control and kept their secrets by conquering any threats.

Although crime existed prior to the prohibition era, it would see a new extent of the meaning throughout this time. Petty gangster began to monopolize the alcohol industry (illegally) and became millionaires by engaging in lucrative criminal operations. These criminal operations included bootlegging, speakeasies and smuggling. What was once a petty thug with little reign, now gained dominance throughout their community and managed to create a criminal empire that provides them with not only wealth, but power. This power could be seen with the merge of prohibition and the political machine in Chicago, thus creating the most notorious criminal organization in U,S, History, the mob.

What happened in the 1920s when the 18th amendment was passed? The 18th amendment banned the production, sale, transportation, exportation, importation and consumption of alcohol. This law gave a rare chance to start a business that caused the rise of organized crime. The Mafia, also known as La Cosa Nostra (Our Thing), or the Mob, is the name of several clandestine organizations in Sicily and the United States. Before the 1920s the mafia’s main focus was on gambling, theft, and prostitution in order to make a profit, but when the Volstead act passed it increased their profits even more because all mafia organizations started a black market for bootlegging the outlawed alcohol and they also created speakeasies which was where they sold

The 1920s carried much change in society. Some of these changes were more rights for women, jazz music, and prohibition. The people of the 1920s were disillusioned by society lacking in idealism and vision, sense of personal alienation, and Americans were obsessed with materialism and outmoded moral values (The Roaring Twenties).Cultural changes were strongly influenced by the destruction of World War I ending 1918. America needed to recover and with it youth rebelled against the norms of the older generations.

As the roaring twenties reached their end the battle against alcohol in the United States is just arising to a turning point. With serious controversy over the Volstead Act the country was greatly divided. There was also the extreme rising occurrences of crime, the creation of gangs and a newly established, unorganized criminal justice system. Prohibition was a disaster across America and the more reforment from the government just made things worse.

The Eighteenth Amendment, also known as the Prohibition Act, took effect as of January 16, 1920, outlawing the manufacture, sale, and transport of alcoholic beverages in the United States from January 1920 till December 6, 1933. Prohibition was established to reduce the effects that alcohol had on families and on society. When primarily men consumed too much alcohol, their actions often resulted in domestic violence,often interfering with men's work performance, and money wasted that the family needed to support families. The prohibition period was very unsuccessful due to people wanting and doing whatever it took to get alcohol now that it was illegal, no matter how enforced prohibition was, leading to many Americans smuggling illegal alcohol

Prohibition INTRODUCTION In the early 1800s Alcohol was a big part of the American Society. In 1920, prohibition was a nationwide ban on the manufacture, importation, transportation, exportation, distribution and the sale of all alcohol. Alcohol was blamed for many of society's issues, among were health problems, crime and corruption and social problems. Alcohol was blame for large amount of domestic violence.

As a nation coming out of a devastating war, United States was in the midst of making major social changes in laws and regulations; one of the most prominent examples of this was the 18th Amendment to the Constitution. The 18th Amendment, prohibition of the manufacture, sale and transport of alcohol, was established during the Roaring Twenties when United States went through a decade full of industrial, economical, and social growth. Originally, President Woodrow Wilson instituted a temporary wartime prohibition to save grain for producing move, but at the same year Congress decided to submit the 18th Amendment. In January 16, 1920, the National Prohibition Act went into effect. Although religious groups, politicians and social organisations advocated the idea of prohibition to reduce crime rate, solve social problems and improve public health, it did not lower the crime rate, it became a major source of corruption, and effected the US economy in a way that it was just a waste of money and time.

By 1932, Americans had reversed the approval and disapproval making the disapproval rating had gone higher. Americans disapproved the prohibition because the criminality and murder went up, business’ were going down and it was impossible to enforce no alcohol. The rate of criminals went up leading to more murders when the Prohibition was enforced. Many criminals such as gangsters, racketeers, bootleggers, and dope sellers got “helped” out by prohibition. Especially in the Great Depression, were alcohol was even more wanted.

The Effects of Prohibition in the American Society Prohibition in America was considered the war on alcohol. Prohibition happened from 1920 to 1933. People wanted to cut out alcohol altogether to try and better the United States. Prohibition leaders believed that once a businesses liquor license was taken away it would make people change their mind on drinking. Leaders had thought that the European Immigrants had brought their drinking problems across seas with them.

Prohibition was a period of 13 years in U.S. history in which the manufacture, sale, and transportation of liquor was made illegal from 1920 to 1933. It was known as the “Noble Experiment” and led to the first and only time an Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was repealed. There were many reasons for why prohibition was introduced, one was that a ban on alcohol would practically boost supplies of important grains such as barley. Another was, when America entered the war in 1917, the national mood turned against drinking alcohol.

In 1919, Congress passed the 18th Amendment which banned the sale and consumption of alcohol in America (Doc B). Prohibitionists overlooked the tenacious American tradition of strong drink and of weak control by the central government. Thus, there was tension between the modernists and the traditionalists. Although the amendment was passed, alcohol was still distributed illegally. Actually, prohibition spawned many crimes, such as illegal sale of alcohol and gang wars.

Temporary fun with lifelong consequences; alcohol. In 1919 the 18th amendment was ratified, this amendment declared it illegal to manufacture, transport and sell alcoholic beverages. America repealed Prohibition due to the crime rate increasing, failure of enforcement and no money being made off of alcohol. Due to the crime rate increasing majorly during Prohibition America had second thoughts on it. The US Census and FBI Uniform Crime Reports in Drug War Facts shows us a graph representing the homicide rate before, during and after the years of Prohibition.

On January 16th of 1919, the American congress passed the Eighteenth Amendment, making all importing, exporting, transporting, selling, and manufacturing of alcohol illegal. It was not until 1920 that the Amendment was enforced. During the era of progressive reform, 1900-1919 it took much convincing to get congress to pass the Amendment. You have a majority of the population against prohibition because saloons were a social hangout for them where they hosted parties, weddings, etc. Then you have the rest of the population for prohibition because of economic, religious, and health reasons.

Prohibition created organized crime groups. It took substantial organization to bootleg the extents of the alcohol people wanted. Prohibition became a failed attempt at constituting morality. Organized crime deals a lot with influence and money. People of law enforcement and politics were bribed and blackmailed.