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The Prohibition era was the period from 1920 to 1933 when the United States prohibited the production, importation, transportation, and sale of alcoholic beverages. [1] The alcohol industry was curtailed by a succession of state legislatures, and Prohibition was formally introduced nationwide under the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified on January 16, 1919.
In 1919, the requisite number of state legislatures ratified the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, enabling national prohibition one year later. Many women, notably members of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, were pivotal in bringing about national Prohibition in the United States, believing it would protect families, women, and children from the effects of alcohol ...
The Volstead Act implemented the 18th Amendment (Prohibition). The act defined "intoxicating beverage" as one with 0.5 percent alcohol by weight. Numerous problems with enforcement [1] and a desire to create jobs and raise tax revenue by legalizing beer, wine, and liquor [2] led a majority of voters and members of Congress to turn against Prohibition by late 1932.
Public sentiment turned against Prohibition during the 1920s. Citizens complained that federal authorities were utilizing resources to enforce liquor laws which even honest people violated.
National Prohibition Act; Other short titles: War Prohibition Act: Long title: An Act to prohibit intoxicating beverages, and to regulate the manufacture, production, use, and sale of high-proof spirits for other than beverage purposes, and to ensure an ample supply of alcohol and promote its use in scientific research and in the development of fuel, dye, and other lawful industries
Crime rates soared under Prohibition as gangsters, such as Chicago's Al Capone, became rich from a profitable, often violent, black market for alcohol. The federal government was incapable of stemming the tide: enforcement of the Volstead Act proved to be a nearly impossible task and corruption was rife among law enforcement agencies. [1]
General Order No. 99 predates the ratification of the 18th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which instituted national Prohibition in 1920. While the 18th Amendment made the production, sale, and transport of alcohol illegal across the United States, the Navy's alcohol ban was narrower in scope, targeting consumption within its jurisdiction.
However, during Prohibition, the rate of use and abuse of alcohol remained significantly lower than before enactment. [24] Though Prohibition created a new category of crimes involving the production and distribution of alcohol, there was an initial reduction in crime associated with drunkenness. [25]