Prohibition Negative Effects

Negative Effects of Prohibition Liquor was in everyday use. Parents were told by doctors to put alcohol on their finger and rub it on babies’ gums to reduce teething pain. The doctors also prescribed liquor to the elderly to reduce pain and aches. Some bosses paid their workers in alcohol and money (Lieurance). Prohibition broke down the economy and caused lots of problems. From here on, the 18th amendment prohibited alcohol to be sold, produced, or transported. This cut jobs and made people jobless (“Prohibition”). The Volstead Act carried out 18th amendment and it only allowed drug stores to prescribe a pint of hard liquor every ten days per person. “On January 16, 1920, scores of thirsty Americans took to the streets to buy their last
“65,000 federal criminal actions happened in the first two years”(Andersom). Men mainly drank alcohol on a day to day basis. When prohibition took place a lot of men wanted the alcohol so bad they did all means necessary to get it. “Increase of illegal production and sell of liquor is known as bootlegging.” (“Prohibition”). Many gangs were formed and created due to absence of alcohol. “In chicago, gang battles resulted in deaths of 8oo gangsters between 1920 to 1933.” A lot people were killed from illegally trying to transport and make alcohol. When a gang transported the illegal alcohol to another gang others would try to take it for there own use. Since prohibition took away jobs people started making their own. One group will produce and sell, then another would transport it. Each gang would have relations to another gang in different city and work with them. Bootleggers would try to transport alcohol then get robbed by another gang, so they would hired a gunman which was there eyes when traveling. They usually transported by ship or truck to keep it on the low (Lieurance). Prohibition caused a lot of crime throughout the
“Franklin D Roosevelt called for appeal when he took office. Then in February 1933 congress adopted a resolution which was the 21st amendment and it would repeal the 18th.” Franklin Roosevelt saw that people were going through a rough time due to the depression starting. Then by 1933 all participating states abandoned prohibition (“Prohibition”). The 21st amendment helped the depression loosen up and start to end. Since that was in place the government could now tax sale on alcohol and make money for people wanting to drink it (Anderson). They dropped prohibition because it was rueing the economy and it wasn't people safe it was doing the exact opposite.
For these reasons, prohibition caused many problems and did more bad than good to the economy. Crime, corrupt law enforcement, and poising from illegal alcohol are some of the many bad thing that prohibition caused. You can't take away things the majority of the people care deeply about or change how they