Eighteenth Amendment

The Eighteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution forbade in all U.S. territories the making, selling, or transporting of “intoxicating liquors.” It was passed on January 16, 1919.

The temperance movement, which promoted abstinence from alcohol, had become one of the cornerstones of the growing women's movement in the last half of the nineteenth century. Alcohol and liquor were perceived by many to be the root of many domestic and social evils and in direct conflict with healthy, happy families.

The Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) was founded in 1874. In 1895, the Anti-Saloon League formed, and it was soon joined by countless other organizations. Together they had great influence on legislators, many of whom were opposed to alcohol themselves.

The passage of the Eighteenth Amendment ushered in the era known as Prohibition . Suddenly there was a proliferation of bootleggers (makers of moonshine, or alcoholic drinks), rumrunners (those who imported liquor, usually from Mexico and Canada), and speakeasies (es-tablishments that sold liquor, often disguised as some other sort of business). Organized crime soon took control of the illegal distribution of liquor, and the government soon had a problem much more serious than the outlawing of alcoholic drinks.

In December 1933, Congress passed the Twenty-first Amendment , which repealed the Eighteenth Amendment. It had become clear that America was not about to give up its consumption of alcohol regardless of the law. Furthermore, enforcing the law prohibiting alcohol had proved a costly thirteen-year battle that could not be won.