The 1919 Experiment known as the Prohibition
“When the Mayor of Berlin, Gustav Boess, visited New York City in the fall of 1929, one of the questions he had for his host, Mayor James J. Walker, was when Prohibition was to go into effect. The problem was that Prohibition has already been the law of the United States for nearly a decade. That Boess had to ask tells you plenty about how well it was working” (PBS). Ironically in 1919 the eighteenth amendment was put into place for the benefit of society that make illegal “manufacture, sale, or transportation intoxicating liquors”. This ratification brought on many changes to American society. It created many criminals and increased crime. These negative consequences were not predicted by the …show more content…
Al Capone was a notorious gangster that was able to take advantage of the opportunity. Capone was involved in bootlegging, prostitution, murders, “bear wars”, and corruption. One of his so called greatest triumphs was to handpick the mayor of Chicago in 1924. His method was violent and ruthless terrorizing opposition voters at gunpoint (Hill,108).. Then again in 1928 election which was called the Pineapple election because of all the grenades used. On the day of the election Capone’s men cased the opposing candidate with guns. Witnesses were present but refused to testify against Capone. All charges were dropped (Pineapple Primary). In contrast Arnold Rothstein sought to make money without violence. He started his smuggling in eastern Long Island by bribing a local coast guard commander. He then had a large convoy transferred to Queens. He almost got caught so he decided to back out but to still remain a major financial backer to his partner in crime (Lawson,60-61). Although Capone and Rothstein had different attitudes on how to make money, they both knew it needed to be done though breaking the law. They saw the desperation of the need of alcohol and took advantage of the …show more content…
The main motive of the repealed was the Great Depression. People began to argue that a repeal of the amendment would give a boost to the economy by creating new jobs at breweries, distilleries, wholesale companies, liquor stores and bars. Additionally there was an ideological alteration in believing the amendment was no longer relevant (Hill,89-90), on December 5, 1933 the 21st amendment was ratified which repealed the 18th amendment.
The results of the addition of the 18th amendment suggest that the supporters didn’t know what they were getting themselves into. Although originally they intended for good, at the end they likely regretted the decision, which is why it was repealed. The 18th amendment brought on corruption, crime, and economic decline. Fortunately there were some that stuck firmly to the law and enforced it against all odds. In conclusion the Prohibition Era was a time of tumult that let rise to many legendary mobsters and brought on the Great
“When the Mayor of Berlin, Gustav Boess, visited New York City in the fall of 1929, one of the questions he had for his host, Mayor James J. Walker, was when Prohibition was to go into effect. The problem was that Prohibition has already been the law of the United States for nearly a decade. That Boess had to ask tells you plenty about how well it was working” (PBS). Ironically in 1919 the eighteenth amendment was put into place for the benefit of society that make illegal “manufacture, sale, or transportation intoxicating liquors”. This ratification brought on many changes to American society. It created many criminals and increased crime. These negative consequences were not predicted by the …show more content…
Al Capone was a notorious gangster that was able to take advantage of the opportunity. Capone was involved in bootlegging, prostitution, murders, “bear wars”, and corruption. One of his so called greatest triumphs was to handpick the mayor of Chicago in 1924. His method was violent and ruthless terrorizing opposition voters at gunpoint (Hill,108).. Then again in 1928 election which was called the Pineapple election because of all the grenades used. On the day of the election Capone’s men cased the opposing candidate with guns. Witnesses were present but refused to testify against Capone. All charges were dropped (Pineapple Primary). In contrast Arnold Rothstein sought to make money without violence. He started his smuggling in eastern Long Island by bribing a local coast guard commander. He then had a large convoy transferred to Queens. He almost got caught so he decided to back out but to still remain a major financial backer to his partner in crime (Lawson,60-61). Although Capone and Rothstein had different attitudes on how to make money, they both knew it needed to be done though breaking the law. They saw the desperation of the need of alcohol and took advantage of the …show more content…
The main motive of the repealed was the Great Depression. People began to argue that a repeal of the amendment would give a boost to the economy by creating new jobs at breweries, distilleries, wholesale companies, liquor stores and bars. Additionally there was an ideological alteration in believing the amendment was no longer relevant (Hill,89-90), on December 5, 1933 the 21st amendment was ratified which repealed the 18th amendment.
The results of the addition of the 18th amendment suggest that the supporters didn’t know what they were getting themselves into. Although originally they intended for good, at the end they likely regretted the decision, which is why it was repealed. The 18th amendment brought on corruption, crime, and economic decline. Fortunately there were some that stuck firmly to the law and enforced it against all odds. In conclusion the Prohibition Era was a time of tumult that let rise to many legendary mobsters and brought on the Great