NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF PROHIBITION
Although the arguments for prohibition were legitimate and a success, it’s easy to say the ratification was definitely one of the parts of America’s past that the government prefers to forget about. The consequences of the Eighteenth Amendment definitely overpowered the fact that the alcohol consumption rate did in fact decrease. People still found a way to get their precious gold in a bottle, whether it was making in their own bathtubs, getting it from a bootlegger, or just going to the nearest speakeasy where they could be sold illegal alcohol. People even drank alcohol at speakeasies that could have been deadly…just as long as they were able to drink (Pendergast 365)! This showed that anything the government passed, it would not even matter because people would just get a hold of the substance in spite of it. Therefore, the amendment itself was pointless.
Because the alcohol trade was such a huge business, organized crime increased as well when gangs formed. Moreover, when there was organized crime, there was violence. Al Capone was a well-known alcohol trader, who was also known as the mayor of Crook County. “He killed plenty of people to gain control over the illegal liquor business” (Smith 17). He also had control over the St. Valentine’s Day massacre that took place on February 14, 1929 at a liquor warehouse over the illegal alcohol trade, where many men’s lives were taken. It was between Capone’s gang and Moran’s gang (Hanson 37).
Although alcohol was made illegal, not all forms were. Medicinal alcohol was not, which caused a lot of corruption amongst doctors. They were bribed to write prescriptions for those who were not in need of alcohol in the first place, and they made a mint. (McCarter prescription). On top of this, police officers were also corrupt because “Police have been paid off to leave them alone” (Hanson 37). This quote is referring to both doctors and gang members. In other words, those with a lot of money could easily get away with breaking the law. All they had to do was pay the cops off.
Because the alcohol trade was such a huge business, organized crime increased as well when gangs formed. Moreover, when there was organized crime, there was violence. Al Capone was a well-known alcohol trader, who was also known as the mayor of Crook County. “He killed plenty of people to gain control over the illegal liquor business” (Smith 17). He also had control over the St. Valentine’s Day massacre that took place on February 14, 1929 at a liquor warehouse over the illegal alcohol trade, where many men’s lives were taken. It was between Capone’s gang and Moran’s gang (Hanson 37).
Although alcohol was made illegal, not all forms were. Medicinal alcohol was not, which caused a lot of corruption amongst doctors. They were bribed to write prescriptions for those who were not in need of alcohol in the first place, and they made a mint. (McCarter prescription). On top of this, police officers were also corrupt because “Police have been paid off to leave them alone” (Hanson 37). This quote is referring to both doctors and gang members. In other words, those with a lot of money could easily get away with breaking the law. All they had to do was pay the cops off.
