On December 5, 1933, the 21st Amendment to the Constitution ended what had been called America’s “noble experiment.” The experiment was Prohibition – a nationwide ban on the manufacture and sale of alcoholic beverages. The ban had been in place for nearly 14 years.
Prohibition had become the law of the land in 1920, when the 18th Amendment took effect. Its supporters hoped that banning alcoholic drinks would make American society better. But that didn’t happen. From the start, the ban proved impossible to enforce. People made their own alcoholic drinks – “bathtub gin” – and visited illegal bars called speakeasies.
Smugglers and gangsters, such as Chicago’s Al Capone, made fortunes selling bootleg (illegal) liquor and beer. Crime, corruption, and alcoholism increased.
Prohibition divided the nation. “Drys” supported it, and “wets” opposed it. But in 1933, most Americans realized that the ban was probably doing more harm than good. Congress passed the 21st Amendment, and Prohibition ended in December when Utah became the 36th state to ratify it.
Some American counties and towns are “dry” today. They have local laws forbidding the sale of alcoholic beverages.