Prohibition DBQ

Do you know why Prohibition made America change its mind ? Well, Prohibition was the nationwide constitutional ban of transportation, manufacture, and sell of alcohol and alcoholic beverages in the United States. Along with this, came the Eighteenth Amendment and the Volstead Act. This period in time was really unpopular because many people were repealing against the ban of alcohol. America changed their minds about Prohibition due to a rise in crimes, enforcement, and economy issues. A factor that lead to a different mindset in Americans, were the crime rates spiking up during this time. Document A demonstrates a connection between gangsters, racketeers, bootleggers, and dope sellers, all leading to Prohibition. It is also significant that they are standing on the word “depression”. The significance of “depression” in the political cartoon is that the prohibition complications lead to the Great Depression era in America. Document B shows the homicide rates were increasing from 1905 to 1933. During …show more content…
Document C implicits that it did not matter that alcohol was banned because there were bootleggers who smuggled alcohol to customers. The significance of the 3 - mile limit was that government could not interfere, even if they had to power to, with deliveries bootlegger’s were making that slipped out to them under cover of darkness in motor speed boats (Doc. C). Smuggling was taking place from Mexico to Canada because it was impossible to patrol thousands of miles of border while smugglers had trucks/ automobiles with the products, running on a regular schedule (Doc. C). Document D enforces a strong argument that Mabel Walker Willebrandt makes about the men who made the laws, are themselves violating them when they appear on the floors in drunken conditions and it is definitely not okay. Congressmen and Senators are violators of the Volstead Act and they themselves patronize bootleggers (Doc.