【明報專訊】In a rare moment of keenness for government intervention, the American people massively supported a ban of alcohol early last century - but not for long. The period of collective (集體的) abstinence (節制), known as the US's Prohibition era (禁酒時期), came to an end today in 1933.
1. The background
There were many reasons why the US went to the extremes to ban alcohol, and religion certainly played a huge role. From the 1840s to the 1930s, Prohibition was an important force in state and local politics. Protestant (新教的) denominations (教派), such as the Methodists (循道宗信徒), deemed saloons (public places where alcoholic drinks were sold and consumed in the Western US in the 19th century, 酒館) politically corrupt and regarded drinking as a personal sin.
Prohibition also had the support of many women, who thought it would be an effective means of preventing their alcoholic husbands from abusing them. The Prohibition Party (禁酒黨), founded in 1869, was a formidable (巨大的) force in the prohibition movement, and it was suggested that, as a result of Prohibition, grain could be saved up for war efforts at a time of the US's involvement in the First World War.
2. Prohibition
In 1846 Maine (緬因州) became the first state to pass a Prohibition law. The Anti-Saloon League (反酒館聯盟), a leading lobby group for prohibition, managed to cause a total of 33 states to adopt Prohibition. With both political parties jumping on the bandwagon (跟隨大隊), the 18th Amendment (第十八修正案) was ratified on 16 January 1919. The Volstead Act (沃爾斯泰德法), which was adopted on 28 October 1919, set down the rules for enforcing the ban and defined the types of alcoholic beverages that were prohibited.
Under the Volstead Act, the manufacture, sale or transport of alcohol was illegal. However, the act did not ban the making at home of wine and cider (蘋果酒) from fruit, nor did it prohibit the consumption of alcohol.
3. The problems
Despite the huge support it had enjoyed, Prohibition became very unpopular after it became law of the land. One complaint was that it was unfair to the poor. While the wealthy could easily maintain a store of alcohol in their cellar, those who didn't were forced into reluctant abstinence.
Prohibition, though it was meant to do good, led to more organised crime. Mafia groups engaged in bootlegging (非法製造販賣酒精). Traffickers snuck liquor from countries like Canada and France by concealing pint bottles within their boots or beneath their trouser legs. Gangsters made huge money from it.
The Saint Valentine's Day Massacre, the 1929 murder of seven mob associates as part of a conflict between two powerful criminal gangs in Chicago, was a damning incident showing what organised crime was like in the Prohibition era.
4. The repeal
Prohibition growing increasingly unpopular, the 18th Amendment was repealed on 5 December 1933 with the ratification of the 21st Amendment. By 1966 all states had abandoned Prohibition.
Think & Study
The Hong Kong government has repeatedly raised tobacco duty (煙草稅) to discourage Hong Kong people from smoking. However, critics complain that smokers have bought contraband cigarettes (私煙) instead of kicking the bad habit. What do you think? Find support for your arguments with the help of the Internet.
