US3 Prohibition

Question 1

What was prohibition?

Answer 1

The nationwide ban on the production importation transportation and sale of alcohol from 1920 to 1933 

Question 2

Why was prohibition introduced?

Answer 2

• Morality - seen by some to be contributing to a decline in moral values
• Rural America - people in rural areas saw the new and growing towns and cities as places where alcohol fueled violence and crime were commonplace
• Religious organisations - and churches opposed alcohol because they claimed it caused a variety of social problems such as violence, poverty, addiction, and debt
• Patriotism - many beers on sale in America were either imported from Germany or brewed by German immigrants during the first world war it was argued that Americans who drank this beer with traitors

Question 3

How was prohibition enforced?

Answer 3

Around 1500 prohibition agents tried to enforce the law. They tried to locate places that sold or made alcohol. They made rest to confiscate the alcohol. 

Question 4

Why was prohibition hard to enforce for?

Answer 4

The USA has 18,600 miles of coastline and land board is to patrol the agents faced their impossible task of trying to prevent alcohol being smuggled in by or over the border

Question 5

What was bootlegging?

Answer 5

The smuggling by sea or over the border of alcohol from Mexico in the south or Canada in the north 

Question 6

How did people respond to prohibition?

Answer 6

Millions of people were willing to break the law and continue drinking so prohibition was difficult to enforce

Question 7

What were speakeasies? 

Answer 7

• Illegal bars ran by gangs which sold bootleg alcohol and moonshine a home-made spirit
• speakeasies were hidden in cellers or private hotel rooms
• they made alcohol very easy to get. 

Question 8

How did the gangs avoid arrest and prosecution?

Answer 8

They made so much money they were able to bribe some of the police officers prohibition agents, border guards, and judges 

Question 9

What was organised crime?

Answer 9

Phrase coined to describe criminal gangs making money through illegal alcohol trade fixing horse and dog racing running brothels and racketeering 

Question 10

What is racketeering?

Answer 10

When businesses were forced to pay money to criminal gangs to stop them smashing up their premises 

Question 11

Who are some of the most famous gangsters?

Answer 11

Al Capone Lucky Luciano Machine Gun Kelly and Vito chicken head Gurino 

Question 12

How much money did Al Capone make through organised crime?

Answer 12

At the height of his power Al Capone was making $2 million a week to organise crime 

Question 13

Why were organised crime leaders rarely arrested?

Answer 13

Because they had a great deal of control over the police, also no witnesses ever wanted to come forward against them 

Question 14

By 1933 how many speakeasies were there in the USA?

Answer 14

• Approximately 200,000
• In New York, there were more speakeasies than they were bars before prohibition 

Question 15

Why did prohibition not work

Answer 15

Instead of America becoming a less violent, more honest and moral country has seen the rise of gangsters organised crime and police corruption

Question 16

What was the AAPA?

Answer 16

The association against the prohibition amendment

Question 17

What did the AAPA argue?

Answer 17

• They attracted thousands of members arguing that prohibition was a threat to a persons right to choose to drink and that prohibition was making people lose respect for the law
• They argued that if alcohol was legal, lots of jobs would be created
• The government could also tax the alcohol so that the government made money rather than the gangsters 

Question 18

What happened to prohibition?

Answer 18

In the 1932 presidential election campaign FDR gained many votes because he opposed prohibition he won the election and an early 1933 he repealed prohibition