Prohibition and crime America in the 1920s

Aims of the lesson By the end of this lesson you will Understand why prohibition was introduced and evaluate its effectiveness Analyse the connection between prohibition and organised crime

Background Many prohibition groups had grown prior to WW1 Broke up families Led to crime Made workers unreliable WW1 brewing of alcohol banned to preserve grain Dec 1917 the 18 th Amendment to the US constitution was passed

The 18 th Amendment Banned the manufacture, transport and sale of alcohol Came into effect in January 1919 Millions wanted to drink Were prepared to break the law to do so Speakeasy – private clubs that sold illegal alcohol

The effects Bootleg alcohol – smuggled in from Mexico and Canada. Many speakeasies were gambling dens Worst places sold moonshine – home made alcohol – dangerous Organised crime had existed before prohibition but grew exponentially because of it. Gangster took over the sale and distribution of alcohol

Organised crime Ran gambling dens, fixed races, ran brothels and clubs Bribed police, judges and officials to overlook their activities Each gang controlled its own area and were untouched by the forces of law and order Many businesses had to pay protection money

Gang War

Gang warfare in Chicago Rival gangs fought for control of the city St Valentines Day Massacre 1929 – 7 members of the Bugs Moran gang killed by Al Capone's gang. No one ever arrested – not unusual – 400 gang related killings in Chicago alone People blamed prohibition for the increase in gang violence

The results Prohibition gave gangs money and power It made criminals out of millions of ordinary Americans – made a mockery of the law WW1 had made many ordinary men into trained killers The invention of the motor car made getaways easier Money meant that police and judges were easy to bribe – got away with murder