Prohibition in Usa 1900-1930

breastwork in USA in the 1900s The proscription was brought on by the tough temperance ordure happening in America in the advance(prenominal) 1900s. These groups were devout Christians who vowed to be sober as they aphorism the affect inebriantic drink had on families. barely the members of this driveway campaigned for every superstar to give up alcohol. The arguments of the Temperance groups were so strong that they eventu ally convinced state g everywherenments to prohibit the barter and produce of alcohol in their state.Politicians backed this case as it secured them votes in the rural areas, and by 1916, the sale and production of alcohol had been banned in 21 states. USAs entry into the war strengthened this movement, as drinkers were being labelled as disloyal cowards for not entering into the war. The fact that Ger umpteen supplied well-nigh of the countries alcohol also helped the movement, as Germany was reassuren as the enemy. Despite the dandy efforts ma ke by the g all overnment, the sale and production if alcohol didnt entirely cease. population all over the US started making their own alcohol, these were called bootleggers People also inured up illegal bars selling scurrilous market alcohol and providing entertainment, these were referred to as Speakeasies and make a fortune. Over the 13 years that the breastwork lasted, over 37,000 illegal distilleries, or stills were shut down, and n azoic 23 million gallons of illegally produced or imported alcohol was seized. But even afterwards all that it is give tongue to that only a fraction was discovered, although it is Impossible to have for certain.Temperance groups had been around for many years, save their quest for a dry rude wasnt prominent until the early 1900s. These groups were strong in rural areas of the US, but after Americas entry into the First military personnel War in 1917, this movement was strengthened. Americas deep sense on patriotism antecedently weakened the temperance movement, as citizens were proud of who they were and all enjoyed a good drink. But when the war was over, and Germany was bossy as the enemy, patriots were unwilling to contribute their economy by buying their alcohol, which greatly helped the movement as most of the US alcohol was supplied by Germany.With majority of the province on their side, the temperance movement grew stronger and by 1917 they had passable states on their side to propose the eighteenth amendment, which banned the manufacture, sale or transportation or wise liquors and in January of 1920 it became a law, cognise as the Volstead Act. The prohibition was not for everyone, and although a lot of Americans agreed with the movement, in that respect were plenty who did not.People began to see there was potentially a lot of money in this, and began to raft up illegal bars selling illegally do alcohol. A lot of these rather a little were immigrants, who were poorly improve but also ruthless(p renominal) and clever. The government implement the prohibition by implementing prohibition agents who discovered and arrested offenders. But despite the work of these agents, who were poorly paid and had a large area to cover, it became apparent that it was practically unrealizable to effectively enforce prohibition in the cities. some speakeasies thrived as bootleggers took advantage of the underpaid officers, and bribed them to keep quiet. Many nation made a vast fortune through the movement, one of the most well-known being Al Capone, who made an estimated 2 billion dollars throughout the 13 years of prohibition. Al Capone was a well-known gang leader, and was notable for his ruthlessness. His criminal activities were not exactly quiet but it was virtually impossible to convict him as he had such a strong control over the constabulary.In 1929 Capone and his gang dressed up as police and murdered 7 members of an opposing gang, which is now known as the St. Valentines day mas sacre. It was at this point where it became apparent that things had gotten out of hand, and some understand it was this event which essentially led to the end of the prohibition. At about the same time, there was a colossal crash in the American stock market. People were losing jobs and the economy was crumbling. By this stage the police were corrupt, the land was lawless and the gangsters were rich and powerful.To make matter worse, by 1930 a great depression had set in and arguments were raised that if the ban on liquor was raised, it would micturate more(prenominal) jobs, the gangsters would have less power and less money, and it would open resources which were dispensed to the agents in charge of the impossible task of enforcing prohibition. These ideas were frowned upon by many, but the country was in need of change. In 1932, the democrat Franklin D Roosevelt was elect president, and by 1933 the eighteenth amendment was revoked.It was said by many that the prohibition w as a complete failure, as from day one it was an immense struggle to enforce the law, and people continued to drink despite it, which resulted in extensive profits for the people illegally producing and selling alcohol. Many people also think that the prohibition was a contributing factor to the great depression, and impacted the country in a negative way. American gloss was greatly changed by the movement, as police became more corrupt than the offenders they were allegedly trying to imprison, and gangsters were controlling the cities which nonplus the country into a state of constant fear.Crime and strength rates rose greatly, the government lost a lot of money from alcohol taxes and the country struggled to support itself without the income which alcohol used to provide. It wasnt until the St Valentines Massacre that people realised how out of control the whole plaza was, and it is referred to as a turning point as it is thought that this event made the government see that t he prohibition was causing more trouble than it was fixing. In conclusion, the prohibition really did not achieve what it set out to do, stop people from drinking and bring in a more civilised country, in fact, it did quite the opposite.