US.37 Explain the background of the Temperance Movement, the passage of the 18th Amendment to the Constitution and the Volstead Act; the impact of Prohibition on American society and its successes and failures, including the rise of organized crime, bootlegging and speakeasies, and repeal by the 21st Amendment. (E, C, H, P)
Lesson 24. (US.37) Prohibition
a. Temperance Movement
b. The Volstead Act & Ratification of the 18th Amendment
c.
d. Impact on Society
e. Success and Failures
f. Repeal of the 21st Amendment
After World War 1 ended, Americans got back to worrying about issues at home. One issue that many Progressives took on was the "Temperance Movement." The Temperance Movement was formed to make alcohol illegal. Many Americans believed that the country would be better off without alcohol.
By 1919, the Temperance Movement had succeeded and the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution was ratified by the states. It was followed by the National Prohibition Act (the Volstead Act), which provided for enforcement of the amendment. These new law were known as Prohibition because they prohibited the manufacture, sale, and distribution of alcohol.
While the manufacture, sale, and distribution of alcohol were illegal, drinking alcohol was still legal... if you could find it. Alcohol remained available, but only through illegal clubs called speakeasies, and from criminal manufacturers and sellers called bootleggers. Bootleggers were often linked to crime organizations, such as the Mafia, which rose in power in big cities like Chicago and New York during the 1920's.