Week 11 Worksheet
1. How does the media affect the idea of a “social bandit?” How did the changes in technology aid in the making of a social bandit? [Kooistra reading]
2. Kooistra argues that social bandits appear under certain conditions – widespread depression or national crises – and the heroic narrative emerges when a large number of people feel “outside the law” or feel the law unjust. Do you agree with this? Why or why not? Can you apply this theory to events in our time? (Current event?)
3. What was actually outlawed with the 18th Amendment/Volstead Act? Why do you think that the law/amendment did not outlaw consumption of alcohol?
4. Prohibition is often referred to as “The Great Social Experiment.” Why do you think that is?
5. What were some of the arguments that were used for prohibition? Was there a religious/ethnic consideration to outlawing alcohol? Do you think prohibition was targeted for urban or rural environments? Why?
Prohibition
HIST/PA/SOC 349
Prohibition
In 1919, states ratified the 18th Amendment to the Constitution, which banned the sale, transport, and manufacture of intoxicating liquors
Went into effect on January 17, 1920
Volstead Act
Provided for the enforcement of the amendment and defined intoxicating liquors
Origins of Temperance
Americans consumed a tremendous amount of alcohol in the early nineteenth century
Evangelical revivalism of the Second Great Awakening prompted many Americans to see alcohol as a social problem by the 1820s
Thought alcohol consumption was a sin that needed to be eliminated
Temperance societies formed in most American cities
Temperance advocates seldom called for legal bans on alcohol, at least initially
Temperance Pledges
Most early temperance advocates advocated the use of moral suasion to convince people to abstain
Congregants of evangelical churches were encouraged to sign temperance pledges in which they promised to abstain completely from drink
State-Level Prohibition
Over time, some temperance advocates complemented their moral suasion efforts with efforts to ban alcohol legally
1851: Maine became the first state to ban the sale of manufacture of alcohol except for medicinal purposes
12 states had enacted similar bans by 1855
1856: Irishmen in Maine riot over law; law was eventually repealed
Temperance fell from prominence as a social issue during the Civil War
Resurrection of Temperance
Temperance rose to prominence again in the 1870s
Beer brewing became more corporatized and large-scale, which played into Progressives’ fears of vice trusts
Because beer manufacturers sponsored saloons, saloons typically only served one type of beer
Increased the number of saloons
Centrality of Taverns
Taverns had always been important social centers, but they rose in prominence even more in the late 19th century
Taverns were a particularly important social center for immigrant men
Taverns in many cities were also tied in with political machines
Machine bosses often ran taverns or otherwise used them as organizing bases
Men could go to taverns to find work
Prohibition Propaganda
Attacking saloons and taverns became part and parcel of a broader Progressive War on political machines
Also part of a broader project to control immigrants, whom many Americans believed were prone to criminality and violence
Temperance as A Women’s Issue
“The Bottle”
Women were major advocates of temperance and prohibition
Temperance and prohibition were deeply tied to the woman suffrage and women’s rights movements
Efforts to ban alcohol were often justified in terms of protecting women and children
Many men squandered their earnings in saloons or became violent when they drank
Temperance As A women’s Issue
Temperance as a Family Issue
THE WCTU
Women’s Christian Temperance Union was founded in 1873 to advocate for temperance, prohibition, and the alleviation of various social ills
Frances Everett Willard, a woman suffrage advocate, popularized it
Organization cast temperance very much as a women’s issue and used it to advocate for woman suffrage
Suffrage would aid women in making the world more moral
Rise of Prohibition
Anti-Saloon League founded in 1893
The saloon league, which advocated for prohibition, was supported by John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie
Tied to concerns about workforce productivity
Advocacy of the WCTU, Anti-Saloon league, and other organizations prompted many states to pass prohibitions on alcohol
World War I
During World War I, the federal government got into the alcohol control business to preserve grain
Banned any beverage over 2.75% alcohol
Association of beer with Germans aided prohibition efforts
Advocates of prohibition renamed beer “Kaiser brew”
Prohibition Begins
Prohibition and Crime
Contrary to popular belief, prohibition did not lead to an outbreak of crime (at least not generally), nor did it fail completely
Drinking decreased; deaths associated with alcoholism fell dramatically
Public drunkenness decreased
Most crime rates remained steady
High murder rates were predominantly associated with the rise of the automobile, which enabled people to commit more daring acts of armed robbery
Prohibition and Crime
While prohibition did not cause a crime wave, it did raise the rates of certain crimes
By making the sale, manufacture, and transport of alcohol illegal, prohibition dramatically expanded the category of crime
Increased criminality resulted
While drinking went down overall, it did not stop being a popular past time amongst Americans, and there were always people willing to meet the demand for drink
Speakeasies
There were far too few prohibition agents to enforce prohibition completely, and speakeasies became common in many American cities
New York was estimated to have 20,000 by 1927
Speakeasies
Both men and women patronized speakeasies, which was a change from earlier saloons
Cocktails originated in the 1920s as people tried to conceal the taste of bootleg liquor and bathtub gin
U.S. efforts to make industrial alcohol undrinkable by corrupting it with methanol lead to tens of thousands of poisoning deaths
Prohibition and Law
Many American argued that Prohibition decreased respect for the law by criminalizing something so minor and so popular as drinking
Term “scofflaw” originated during this time
Prohibition also increased the scale of organized crime
Prohibition and the Rise of Organized Crime
HIST/PA/SOC 349
Perceptions of High Crime
Many contemporary people believed that crime rates skyrocketed during Prohibition
They didn’t
Most of people were probably basing that impression on one of two things:
The perception that Prohibition made many people into criminals and decreased respect for the law
The fact that organized crime and the violence associated with it became much more visible
Speakeasies
Though Prohibition reduced drinking overall, many Americans continued to drink
New social establishments that catered to drinkers formed in many cities
New York was estimated to have 20,000 speakeasies by 1927
Speakeasies
Both men and women patronized speakeasies, which was a change from earlier saloons
Cocktails originated in the 1920s as people tried to conceal the taste of bootleg liquor and bathtub gin
U.S. efforts to make industrial alcohol undrinkable by corrupting it with methanol lead to tens of thousands of poisoning deaths
Disregard for prohibition
Many people also turned to home brewing
Manufacturers sold products that could easily be manufactured into beer or wine
“I am convicted that a vast array of lawbreakers has been recruited and financed on a colossal scale; that many of our best citizens, piqued at what they regarded as an infringement of their private rights, have openly and unabashedly disregarded the Eighteenth Amendment; that as an inevitable result respect for all law has been greatly lessened; that crime has increased to an unprecedented degree-I have slowly and reluctantly come to believe.” –John D. Rockefeller
Prohibition and Law
Many American argued that Prohibition decreased respect for the law by criminalizing something so minor and so popular as drinking
Term “scofflaw” originated during this time
Prohibition also increased the scale of organized crime
Enforcement of Prohibition
Responsibility for prohibition enforcement were divided between the federal, state, and local governments
This system did not work well
State governments often hoped the Federal government would assume primary responsibility, and vice versa
Many local authorities refused to enforce prohibition to any great extent, and some states did not want to fund enforcement because it was unpopular
Federal prohibition agents operating under the Department of Internal Revenue could sometimes be dedicated, but they were often corrupt in the early years
Enforcement of Prohibition
After 1927, Prohibition enforcement became an independent bureau under the Treasury
Between July of 1926 and April of 1930, John Pennington, a Pittsburgh prohibition enforcer, achieved the following:
15,000 raids
18,000 people arrested
3,000 distilleries shut town
4,500 stills shut down (which could collectively produce 350,000+ gallons of liquor a day
416 breweries shut down
44 alcohol plants, 100 cutting plants shut down, and about 200 storage facilities shut down
1,800 automobiles seized
3.4 million gallons of mash, 180,000 gallons of moonshine, 10,000 gallons of wine, 650,000 gallons of beer, and 113 gallons of alcohol destroyed
Enforcement
Because prohibition agents were so underfunded, they were often forced to go after small targets, including people who made moonshine in rural stills
Enforcement in some urban areas became more of a publicity stunt than a sustained, concerted effort
Izzy Einstein and Moe Smith
Einstein and Smith disguised themselves and staged raids on a number of popular New York City clubs and speakeasies
Made thousands of arrests and had a conviction rate of over 95%
Were eventually laid off
This was rumored to be related to an incident in which they raided Club 21 and arrested prominent citizens
Intensification of Laws
U.S. prison population increased six-fold between 1910 and 1929, and much of that increase had to do with prohibition
Nevertheless, many authorities and politicians were frustrated at the continued prevalence of prohibition violations
Federal government passed the Jones Act in 1929
Allowed for up to five years in prison and $10,000 in fines for liquor violations
Michigan made life sentence mandatory for anyone convicted of a fourth liquor
Many states treated the possession of a flask on one’s person the same as the possession of an illegal handgun.
Rise of Organized Crime
There had been rumors of mafia and “Black Hand” activity in cities like Chicago dating back to the late 19th century
The Black Hand was not an organization so much as a blackmail scheme
It’s difficult to tell how extensive organized crime actually was in the early 20th century
Prohibition created new opportunities for organized crime
Large-scale smuggling and manufacturing of liquor required significant logistical planning and organization
Organized Liquor Rackets
Roy Olmstead, Seattle
In the early years of Prohibition, many of the people involved in the bootlegging or liquor smuggling trades were not people who had been involved in previous criminal enterprises
Example: Roy Olmstead
Seattle police officer who smuggled liquor in from Canada
Known as an “honest” bootlegger who did not dilute his product and forbid his men from carrying guns
George remus
Former defense attorney who became a liquor kingpin in Cincinnati
Remus did not think of himself as a gangster, and he organized his operation as a sophisticated business that he called “The Circle”
Bought up distilleries and drug companies
Bribed members of the Harding administration to look the other way and provide him with immunity from prosecution
Hired people to rob his own vehicles
Because he controlled every part of the business and had so many officials in his pocket, Remus had little need to resort to violence
Gangs and Liquor
Soon enough, however, urban ethnic gangs became dominant forces in the bootlegging business
Johnny Torrio (Italian) and Dean O’Banion (Irish) vied for power in Chicago
Arnold Rothstein came to dominate New York
Jewish and Italian gangsters competed for control of Philadelphia’s liquor trade
Jewish Purple Gang dominated Detroit’s trade
Famous Gangsters
Alphonse Capone
Charles “Lucky” Luciano
Gang Wars
Gangs were basically profit-seeking organizations, and many tried to avoid violence if possible
When turf-sharing arrangements worked out, the illegal liquor trade was often fairly peaceable; when they didn’t gang wars broke out
One of the most notorious of these was between Johnny Torrio and Dean O’Banion’s Gang
O’Banion controlled Chicago’s North side, but he wanted a greater share of business and also resented that Torrio did not crack down on a group of Sicilians who were invading his territory
Alliances broke down
O’Banion was assassinated, probably at the behest of Torrio
Torrio was shot and severely wounded, leaving Al Capone in charge
In subsequent years, Chicago murder rate jumped 250%
Gangland Murder in Los Angeles (1933)
Purple Gang Murder, Detroit
Gangland Murder
Al Capone and Social Banditry
Despite their participation in numerous acts of violence, Prohibition-era gangsters often enjoyed a popularity with the American public
Many cultivated their image by participating in philanthropy
Al Capone enjoyed a great deal of popularity in Chicago, especially in the Italian immigrant community
It wasn’t until the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre of 1829, in which Capone’s forces executed six of Bugs Moran’s men, that Capone’s popularity began to wane
