Prohibition. Many people found ways around the new laws. Smugglers called bootleggers smuggled alcohol into America from abroad.

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As soon as Prohibition was brought about in January 1920, thousands of illegal saloons around the country selling alcohol opened up to the public called 'speakeasies'. The fundamental flaw of the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution was that it only stated, "... the manufacture, sale or transportation of intoxicating liquors within ... the United States ... for beverage purposes is hereby prohibited." This meant that it was perfectly legal to drink alcohol, thereby defeating the entire purpose of the Prohibition in the first place.

Many people found ways around the new laws. Smugglers called 'bootleggers' smuggled alcohol into America from abroad. It was generally quite easy to bring alcohol into the country from Canada across the Great Lakes; it was very hard for the authorities to patrol such a large area of water. One could also easily bring in alcohol from the Bahamas or Mexico. It was very easy to do this as the American coastline had a border of 30,000 kilometres; a long stretch of land to be patrolled.

'Moonshiners' brewed their own alcohol and spirits in the countryside where they could not be easily found. The problem with the alcohol they made was that