History of Substance Use

Prohibition was the the ban on the sale and manufacture of alcohol. It began in the 1920s, and lasted until 1933 (history.com). Prohibition gained its roots via the temperance movement, which pushed for traditional values, including the ban of alcohol (PBS, 2011).

The temperance movement gained momentum beginning in the 1800s (PBS, 2011). It started within the Protestant churches, who believed that alcohol was the root of all sins (PBS, 2011). These individuals believed that if alcohol was outlawed, that many domestic problems would cease to exist.

Therefore, members of the Protestant church pushed for the prohibition of alcohol. However, the women of the temperance movement were not the only ones pushing for prohibition. The Anti-Saloon League was formed not long after the temperance movement (PBS, 2011). According to PBS, the ASL was led by Wayne Wheeler, who was extremely adamant about banning alcohol (2011).

After the ratification of an amendment that changed the laws concerning income tax in 1913, the ASL movement was able to gain a lot of much-needed momentum (PBS,2011). This amendment reduced the government’s reliance on liquor taxes, and therefore many began to support the Anti-Saloon League (PBS,2011).

The ASL gained popularity, and even began to use the rising anti-German sentiment to turn the country against alcohol (PBS, 2011). As America was faced with World War I, the ASL’s tactics of connecting Germany to beer and breweries proved extremely effective. By 1920, the Anti-Saloon League succeeded in ratifying the 18^th amendment, which outlawed the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol (PBS, 2011).

Prohibitionists had finally gotten what they wanted, an anti-alcohol America. However, not all of America was in favor of prohibition. Soon after the 18^th amendment was put into effect, anti-prohibitionists started popping up everywhere. According to PBS, bandits began robbing whiskey and grain alcohol from train cars (2011).

This new anti-prohibition movement displayed the fact that American citizens were not ready to let go of alcohol. This is where the problem began. It was inevitable that people would find a way around prohibition.

According to PBS, those who supported prohibition expected real estate sales and clothing sales to explode once the sale of alcohol was forbidden (2011). However, this was not the case. Sales actually declined, as businessmen found they were hard-pressed to make sales without liquor (PBS, 2011). Prohibition proved to have many unintended effects.

One of which was the fact that citizens would still find a way to produce and consume alcohol. Prohibitionists thought that the 18^th amendment, as well as the Volstead Act, would completely eliminate alcohol altogether (PBS, 2011). Instead, individuals obtained alcohol through prescriptions of whiskey, and because of religious reasons (PBS, 2011). But it didn’t stop there, many Americans began to manufacture and sell alcohol through their own homes (PBS, 2011).

Thus, speakeasies were born. It seems as though prohibition only worked as far as to make the problem worse. Prohibitionists intended to abolish alcohol altogether, but only succeeded in spurring a large underground movement that promoted hidden alcohol use.