Crime had increased so badly that even the government was corrupted. Politicians began to have business with gangsters because it was a easy way to make money. Society began to change into a corrupt one. Kids were brought up in a law breaking society. Lawyers, judges, police and government officials were paid bribes by the gangsters to ignore the issue of alcohol production and illegal bars.eg.Federal Agent Izzy Einstein lost his job in 1925 because he raided 21 club which was a politician’s bar.
To make matters worse the federal agents who were meant to look out for illegal consumption of alcohol were not effective. They had low wages of $2000, there were too many people breaking the law, some got bribes from gangsters and there were only 15000 to cover 3,000,000 square miles. The law officers had an impossible task to police all America, Canada and Mexico and neither of these both countries had banned alcohol. However there were a lot of police arrests for example in Chicago, 16000 were arrested.
US society began to change because even the women began to go to speakeasies when they were the ones who strongly supported the prohibition law. Speakeasies multiplied rapidly in the larger cities with Chicago top of the list having over 10,000 'speakeasies' at the height of Prohibition. There was a certain glamour attached to 'speakeasies' with its popular music which gave higher rise in the amount of women attending the illegal bars. Society began changing not for the better but the worst. While the youths and the younger people enjoyed it the older generation disagreed to the breaking of the law.
The introduction of prohibition gave ambitious gangsters an enormous opportunity to make a lot of money. Before prohibition, gangsters did not have anything to sell that everybody wanted to buy but now that they had alcohol; the organised crimes reached a new level in America. The most famous gangsters were Al Capone and John Torrio, who operated mainly in Chicago as a result of Prohibition.
Torrio led an Italian-American gang. He managed to get Chicago separated into gang territories to reduce tension between rival gangs. He bought the 'protection' of the current Mayor, Mayor Bill Thompson and ensured political support for him by riggin elections. Torrio's main business however was 'bootlegging' and 'speakeasies' from which he made a huge profit.
Capone was known for his speakeasies and organising 'rackets' or raids on shops and shop owners of rival gangs or those who owed money. For example the St.Valentines massacre where 7 leading members of Bugs Moron’s gang (Capone’s main rival) were killed in their meeting place by members of Capone’s gang. Capone also put his own gang to run for the 1924 elections for the council. To make things worse polling places were raided, voter and election workers who were against him were kidnapped. The police had come too late and Capone’s candidates were elected and Cicero was brought under the mob’s control.
In conclusion the effects of Prohibition were generally very negative because the society had got worse than what it was before the prohibition of alcohol. The main consequences of prohibition were smuggling and the increased rate of crime. The supporters of prohibition were not pleased with this because the main reason why prohibition was introduced was to stop crime and ironically ever since prohibition began there was an increase in crime and violence. No true justice existed since everything became corrupted. Other crimes include gambling and prostitution. Millions of Americans neglected the law and continued to drink during prohibition so in conclusion the evils of society were not addressed by this law.
Describe the main aspects of the economic boom in the USA in the 1920s.
After World war one, America became a very rich country.for eight years between 1921-1929,there was a ‘boom’ in the American economy.during this perod business did very well, sales increas4ed
