Prohibition: The Experiment That Failed.

The first 200 words of this essay...

"The saloon is still here, and more people are engaged in the business than in the pre-Volstead days. You did not exterminate the brewery. You made millions of little breweries and installed then in the homes of the people."

--Senator James A. Reed

Addressing the Prohibition supporters in the Senate, 1929

(Hill 79).

On January 17, 1920 the 18th Amendment to the United States Constitution was put in effect, and the usage, manufacture, sales, or transportation of alcohol was outlawed. Women played an important role in the battle against alcohol. They formed unions and fought for the abolition of liquor distribution and use, which they believed, was poisoning their sons and husbands (Rebman 13). Women alone couldn't be held accountable for the passing of the Volstead Act and the 18th Amendment; male political figures with significant power supported the women's' fight against liquor and for 13 years alcohol was outlawed in America (Rebman 19). The American public was outraged by the Prohibition but it didn't stop them from enjoying the Roaring 20's.

Secret nightclubs called Speakeasies emerged, and illegal distribution of liquor persisted throughout the decade. Prohibition was responsible for the crime