Prohibition in the 1920s

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Prohibition in the 1920s

America sits for its portrait through an era of wonderful nonsense as stated in the book, This Fabulous Century 1920-1930, describes the Roaring 20s, which was a.frivolous, free wheeling decade when ladies wore flapper gowns and bobbed their hair. Men started to engage in business affairs, such as the Stock Market and many sports events were held like Derbies. Many new dances like the Charleston were invented and the Jazz age evolved, along with many positive aspects evolving. The Prohibition of alcohol was a devastating downfall for the raging youth of the twenties. When the United States announced the ban of all liquor and alcohol there became much controversy on how to obtain alcohol, therefore many people engaged in bootlegging, the illegal selling of alcohol, which led to organized crime. On January 16,1920, the Eighteenth Amendment abolished the manufacture, transportation, and sale of liquor, beer, and wine throughout the United States. The 1920s were nearly two weeks old when the United States launched this ludicrous act. The eighteenth amendment was intended to reduce drinking by abolishing the businesses that made and sold alcohol: breweries, wholesale sellers and retail establishments such as saloons which were places that women went to enjoy a cocktail. As the eighteenth Amendment states "No person shall, on or after the date when the 18th amendment to the constitution of the United states goes into effect, manufacture, sell, barter, transport, import, export, deliver, furnish or possess any intoxicating liquor except as authorized in this act (Constable, The Fabulous Century)." At first, prohibition was a popular step. Supporters of prohibition, who endorsed the law, believed that it would help the poor because paychecks would not be wasted on alcoholic beverages, which was done by many people during this time, many of which had starving children. Many industrial leaders of the time, such as Rockefeller, Ford, and Carnegie, all supported prohibition because they believed that alcohol decreased productivity of workers. Eventually, the effects of Prohibition were not as desired. Innocent citizens were searched and shot by police, and because the role of alcohol changed, people drank more instead of less. It also caused the up rise of organized crime.

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"Among the various and sundry suppliers who helped Americans ease that parched feeling during Prohibition, none was more important--and none profited more handsomely--than the bootlegger (Constable, The Fabulous Century)." Since alcohol was now illegal, people had to find other ways to obtain or sell it. There were bootleggers, who made, sold, and transported alcohol illegally. Bootleggers were criminals who were part of organized gangs. People who made alcohol themselves at home were called moonshiners and those who imported it into the United States from other countries were rumrunners. "The word bootlegger was coined to describe moonshiners who carried liquor to ...

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