Prohibition
The social movement, primarily in the United States of
America, to prohibit alcoholic beverages legally. The
motive behind this social movement was the negative
effects of alcohol on families, human health, work per-
formance, incidence of violence, and crime prevention.
Alcoholism ruined millions of lives and families in
19th-century America, and Prohibition, or the legal
elimination of alcohol (beer, wine, gin, whiskey, etc.),
was seen as the solution for this social problem. Most
of the impetus for the Prohibition movement came
from EVANGELICAL CHRISTIAN churches (BAPTIST,Me-
thodist, etc.). Protestant America was shocked by the
widespread alcoholism and drunkenness of new immi-
grants (Irish, Italian, Russian), many of whom were
CATHOLIC. Prohibition, then, can be seen partly as a
white Protestant reaction to non-northern-European
cultural influences in the United States.
In 1917, Congress approved the Eighteenth
Amendment to the CONSTITUTION, forbidding the man-
ufacture, sale, or transportation of alcoholic beverages.
It took effect in 1920 and was repealed by the Twenty-
first Amendment in 1933. Prohibition had the unwel-
come results of encouraging large criminal or mobster
organizations that gained great wealth by illegally pro-
ducing and distributing alcoholic beverages. In major
cities, widespread violations of Prohibition laws made
the legislation ineffective. Rural areas adapted to the
measures more easily, and alcoholism did decline in
the United States. Since the repeal of Prohibition, alco-
holism, deaths by drunk drivers, and violent crime
related to alcohol have increased. Attempts to curb the
negative effects of alcohol (rather than the prohibition
of alcohol) include increased penalties for alcohol-
related traffic violations and job screening for drug and
alcohol use.
The social benefits of Prohibition are still debated,
but it remains an example of CHURCH-AND-STATErela-
tions and problems.property
In political thought, property is discussed in terms
of what constitutes property (land, skills, money,
jobs, industry, income, RIGHTS, etc.), whether itproperty 243Prohibition officers raiding the lunchroom of a Washington, D.C., establishment.(LIBRARYOFCONGRESS)