Prohibition 1920s

Why was prohibition introduced

-They said alcohol caused violence,immoral behaviour and breakdown of family life

When time period was prohibition

From 1920 to 1933

What did prohibition lead to

-The demand led to people distributing alcohol illegally.

-People know as moonshiners made their own liquor, and made rum-runners smuggled alcohol into the USA.

-Bootleggers took alcohol that was meant to be used in industry and made it drinkable.

-Gangs ran illegal bars called speakeasies which sold bootleg alcohol

How did prohibition cause organised crime

-Gangs didn’t just get indices in illegal alcohol trade. They also made money though fixing horse and dog race, running brothels and racketeering. This behaviour was called organised crime.

Who was Al Capone and what famous incident was his crew involved in

-Al Capone was a powerful gang leader who fought gangsters in Chicago to run the city’s speakeasies. This battle for control led to extreme violence and hundreds of murders. Members of rival gangs were targeted and killed by Al Capone. He made $2m a week through organised crime. The police never managed to convict Capone for his crimes as they had control over police

-Famous incident was St Valentines massacre where Al Capone gang killed Seven men of this rivals in 1929

What was the impact of prohibition on society

There was 200,000 speakeasies in USA.

-It led to increased prostitution,gambling,organised crime and more corruption by goverment.Also goverment income from taxes decreased by 11 billion.

-Gangsters would bribe judges and policemen to overlook their illegal behaviour.

-Had a negative impact on public health and poor quality alcohol caused many deaths

How did Prohibition end

-It was argued if alcohol was legalised it would create a lot of legal jobs.

-The govermnt could also tax alcohol itself which means more tax revenue.

-So in 1933 FDR created the beer act