Prohibition of Alcohol - Research Paper Example

Along with taste, the level of intoxication associated with the alcoholic drinks and the relaxation that a person gets by using alcohol are some other factors why people become addicted to use of such drinks. Another fact regarding use of alcohol is that it makes a person come out of depression and boredom for the time being. Social influence is another major factor behind increase in the use of alcoholic drinks in most parts of the world. If we talk about the United States of America, use of alcoholic drinks is not considered an unusual thing in the American society.

People serve such drinks in parties, in functions, and in different ceremonies. The legal age for drinking, buying, and selling alcoholic drinks in the United States is over twenty-one years. An adult in the United States can vote at the age of eighteen but cannot drink before reaching the age of twenty-one (Peck 5). Excessive use of alcohol is very harmful not only for the health and mind of the person who takes such drinks but also for the whole community because a person taking excessive alcohol has less control over mind which can make him/her harm other people physically.

This is the reason why use of alcohol is banned in many parts of the world. . However, the age restriction is not enough to reduce the number of harms associated with the consumption of alcohol. The government needs to prohibit large-scale consumption of alcohol in order to make the lives of people safe and secure. Alcohol Prohibition in the United States (1920-1933) From 1920 to 1933, alcohol was completely banned in the United States of America. The intention of the government of that time was to eliminate all businesses related to alcohol manufacturing in order to keep people away from the use of alcoholic products.

American people initially welcomed the alcohol prohibition, but with the passage of time, the acceptance of prohibition turned into rejection by the people. “The period began in 1920 with general acceptance by the public and ended in 1933 as the result of the public’s annoyance of the law and the ever-increasing enforcement nightmare” (Graham). There were different factors, which led the government’s way towards putting ban on alcohol consumption. Some of the most influencing factors include temperance movements lead by religious denominations, campaign led by woman’s Christian Temperance Union and Anti-Saloon League, implementation of local alcohol prohibition laws by different states and countries throughout America, the 18th amendment, and the Volstead Act.

The temperance movements were the most influencing factors behind alcohol prohibition. “The Temperance movement blamed alcohol for many of society's ills, especially crime and murder” (Rosenberg). The temperance movement gained momentum with every passing day and by 1916, almost half of the states belonging to the United States prohibited the use of alcohol in those