The Negative Effects Of Prohibition

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After World War I ended, the U.S. was prospering: people were buying whatever their hearts desired, young women were rebelling for reform, and everyone was celebrating the victory of the war. However, some people felt that there were big changes that needed to be made. There was a looming problem over the nation: alcohol. Not only was the public beginning to feel that the problem should be addressed, but Congress also felt that action needed to be taken. In 1919, the Eighteenth Amendment was ratified by Congress in order to ban the manufacturing, transporting, and selling of alcohol (Dudley 93). People like John Gordon Cooper, a Republican congressman from Ohio, believed that Prohibition was a success and that the 18th Amendment should not …show more content…

Stayton, the founder and leader of the Association Against the Prohibition Amendment, felt that Prohibition was a failure and had harmful effects (Dudley …show more content…

As Mr. Stayton points out, “attempted prohibition enforcement...has introduced into important departments of the Federal Government, corruption on a colossal scale” (Dudley 95). He goes on to reference the statistic from the testimony of Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, “875 prohibition agents have been dismissed for corruption” and this goes to show how widespread the grasp of organized crime became after Prohibition was put into effect (Dudley 95). One must put into consideration that 875 is only the number of agents that have been caught, but surely this number would be much larger if the entirety of corrupt agents were to be discovered. Prohibition gave way to law enforcement, federal agents, and public officials being coerced and bribed by organized crime leaders in order for them to turn a blind eye, this is why Prohibition was a failure. Prohibition did not get rid of alcohol and better the nation, instead it turned those who were supposed to protect the people into puppets of illicit ring leaders. One should also be able to see why Mr. Stayton was correct because of Mr. Cooper’s argument stating, “Of course it will become more effective as a new generation which never knew the open saloon takes the place of those who cannot forget their appetites for strong drink” (Dudley 93). With an argument like this in play, one must realize that Prohibition was a failure because

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