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Constitutional Amendments       Yashoda Katel

Through out the history of the United States of America, there have been many amendments that have been passed that have brought many political, social and economic changes to American society. When the Founding Fathers wrote the constitution, they included the amendment process so changes can be made in the future.

Two examples of changes were the 18th Prohibition Amendment in 1919 and 19th the Womens Suffrage Amendment in 1920. Both Amendments brought significant changes in changes to America.

One example of change is Prohibition

The actual Temperance Movement  started around 1830 when the drinking of alcohol became a national problem (https://prohibition.osu.edu/why-prohibition). Wives and families protested against alcohol use because men were creating big family and social problems because of their alcohol abuse. They did not oppose casual drinking until it grew into a huge social problem. In 1893 The Anti-Saloon League was formed to reduce alcohol consumption, if not outright prohibit it, by enforcing existing laws and by implementing new ones. This organization also sought to eliminate bars, taverns, and saloons, believing that these businesses promoted the consumption of alcohol (http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/w/Anti-Saloon_League_of_America?rec=845).

The real problems with alcohol abuse are well documented in a video. (http://www.pbs.org/kenburns/prohibition/watch-video/#id=2082675582) 

The problem did not include all men, but still the problem was very big. Husbands and fathers would drink every day and come home and fight with their wife. Some would actually beat their wife and children. Some were spending all of their money in bars and many were losing their jobs.  Saloons were there to supply all the whiskey men wanted. They also started gambling and even prostitution in order to keep the men in the bars in order to make more money. Saturday nights became the day when men would drink all day and come home and start trouble. At that time divorce was illegal so the wives could not take their children and leave. Families were falling apart.

This led to the formation of the Anti-Saloon League focused on implementing anti-alcohol laws in local communities. At this time there was about one saloon for every 150-200 men.  (http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/w/Anti-Saloon_League_of_America?rec=845) As support grew, the League began a national campaign to implement Prohibition. In 1913, the League sponsored a parade in Washington, DC. At the parade’s conclusion, the League's superintendent, Purley Baker, presented an amendment to the United States Congress and to the House of Representatives.

Finding Distilleries

The 18^th Amendment of the United States Constitution effectively established the prohibition of alcoholic beverages in the United States by declaring the production, transport, and sale of alcohol. The separate Volstead Act set down methods of enforcing the Eighteenth Amendment, and defined which "intoxicating liquors" were prohibited, and which were excluded from prohibition (e.g., for medical and religious purposes). The Amendment became law in 1920 For the following 13 years Prohibition was officially in effect, though the ability to enforce it was limited by the Volstead Act and by corrupt and complacent politicians who overlooked illicit manufacturing and smuggling.  

There was a significant reduction in alcohol consumption among the general public and there was a reduction in overall crime, mainly in the types of crimes associated with the effects of alcohol consumption. Prohibition kind of worked. In the early 1920s, drinking of alcohol was about thirty per cent of the pre-prohibition level. Consumption grew somewhat in the last years of prohibition, as illegal supplies of liquor increased and as a new Generation of Americans would not obey the law. It was a long time after repeal before consumption rates rose to their pre-prohibition levels. In that sense, prohibition "worked.
But the prohibition of alcohol didn't eliminate demand. Some people made alcohol in their bathtubs. This was called “Bathtub Gin.  Ssome would go to illegal “Speakeasy” saloons to drink and party. Smugglers also imported illegal liquor at big profit. One of the most infamous rum runners was Al Capone in Chicago. Another smuggler was William McCoy. He built speed boats and when the 18^th Amendment became law he could make a lot more money carrying rum back to America from the Bahamas. His high-quality, imported alcohol made the phrase "the real McCoy”. Bootleggers and Rum Runners simply came outside the American boundaries and transferred the alcohol with speedboats that could sneak into secret places to unload.

The initial economic effects of Prohibition were mostly negative. The closing of breweries, distilleries and saloons led to the elimination of thousands of jobs. Taxes were also lost. The solution Congress had made to address the problem of alcohol abuse had instead made the problem even bigger. More people were drinking than before. Prohibition did not work http://www.pbs.org/kenburns/prohibition/unintended-consequences/  Prohibition, failing fully to enforce sobriety and costing billions, rapidly lost popular support in the early 1930s. In 1933, the 21st Amendment to the Constitution was passed, ending national Prohibition.        
        

Another example is Women Suffrage

The 19th Amendment change after Prohibition. Among the reform movements of the eighteen hundreds was the Women's right that sought to overcome inferior status of women. The chief among the issues was the womens lack of right concerning property, voting and education in 1848. Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton organized the womens right convention at Seneca Falls, NY. They fought to give womens right to all women in the USA. Minimal gains were made and by 1850 women were focusing more and more on the issues of Suffrage.

The demand for free public education grew out of the concern that only intelligent voters could support and perpetuate democracy, therefore the state had the responsibility of financing education for all women. Before that women were uneducated and only were allowed to work at home and perform activities such as cooking, housekeeping and have children and taking care of them. Some men were treating wives badly and disrespectful. After the 19th Amendment became law women started to become more independent. They started to work outside of the home the same as the men. Some women became professional workers, like doctors, teachers and also became involved in government activities.

The next step was to get the right to vote. Woman activists paraded in the streets for the right to vote and some even went to jail in protest.


Men even fought and protested against this right in order to control the women.


Finally, in 1920 they were successful in achieving the right to vote by Congress and women had equal footing when electing the candidates they preferred at all levels of government like County, State and Federal elections.

The 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits any United States citizen from being denied the right to vote on the basis of sex.  Until the 1910s, most states disenfranchised women. The amendment was the culmination of the women's suffrage movement in the United States, which fought at both state and national levels to achieve the vote.