The Eighteenth Amendment, ratified on January 29th, 1919, prohibited the manufacture, transportation and sale of intoxicating liquors in the United States. Up to this point in the 20th century, prohibition movements had been popularizing across the country, aided by religious groups who considered alcohol, specifically drunkenness, a threat to the nation. By 1916, 23 of 48 states had ratified anti saloon legislation many even going further by prohibiting the manufacture of all alcoholic beverages. The Congressional elections of that year yielded a 2/3 majority of “dry” (those in favor of alcoholic prohibition) vs. “wet” members.

In examining the history of alcohol as a legal, illegal, and legal again substance, a main theme that occurs is one intertwined with the Temperance movement, which included a large number of religious groups who advocated for the reduction of alcohol and drunkenness in the country. Important to note is that the Temperance movement was instrumental in outlawing slavery. Those involved in the Temperance movement viewed slavery and alcohol as detrimental to US society. The National Prohibition Act was also passed in 1919 to give Congress power to enforce Prohibition. The 18th Amendment went into effect in January of 1920.

It is interesting how things have been defined as legal and illegal and that in the case of slavery and alcohol, the same group was primarily responsible for both of their outlawing. Through examining history, we can see the different incentives for certain practices or substances to be deemed legal or illegal. Slavery can be viewed as negative for the waves of unequal distribution of opportunity and ideology that it produced across US history, therefore we would believe it a good thing that slavery was outlawed. It is more difficult to determine if alcohol or other substance’s outlawing was beneficial or not to US history since the history of drug enforcement is still unraveling.

The 18th Amendment signaled a dominance of the ideals at the root of the Temperance movement and those who seemed to push anti-drunken and conscious altering substance use in America. If the history of substance use and enforcement in the US were to be laid out on a rope, and each prominent group of Americans were to take up a handle of that rope, religious groups should be given a +1 for effect.

Works Cited:

“18th and 21st Amendments.” History.com. A&E Television Networks. 12 Oct. 2013 <http://www.history.com/topics/18th-and-21st-amendments>.

“Speakeasies of the Prohibition Era.” Speakeasies of the Prohibition Era. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Oct. 2013 <http://www.legendsofamerica.com/ah-prohibitionspeakeasy.html>.