Prohibition In The 1920s

Although more than two-thirds of the Senate, two-thirds of the House of Representatives, and three-fourths of the state legislatures approved Prohibition, after fourteen years, America changed its stance of the situation involving intoxicating liquors. An “intoxicating liquor” can be defined as any beverage that contains alcohol. In early 1920, the 18th Amendment and the Volstead Act, which were passed by Congress, prohibited the manufacturing, selling, transporting, possession, and use of alcoholic beverages. One reason for the approval of prohibition is that drinking was thought of the major reason behind some of America’s serious problems, which included corruption, child abuse, crime, and unemployment. Although it can be thought of as “morally correct,” Prohibition failed for the following reasons: it increased crime rates, led to a rise in homicides, the attempt to enforce prohibition laws,

The cartoon depicts five men who represent the major crimes that engulfed American during the 1920s-1930s. At the time, there was a lot of gang crime, racketeers (people who obtained money illegally by fraud, gambling, or violent threats), bootleggers (people who produced and sold alcohol illegally), and dope sellers. The man in the very center, Prohibition, stands out the most due to his height. Prohibition, symbolizes the cause or “leader” of the other crimes. The word “Depression” is shown under the men’s feet, symbolizing that the crimes are the cause of the Depression. (Document