Eleanor Finch
The Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which established the prohibition of alcohol, is the only constitutional amendment to have been repealed. The Twenty-First Amendment, ratified on December 5, 1933, repealed the Eighteenth Amendment, ending the nationwide ban on the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcohol. The Eighteenth Amendment, ratified in 1919, was the result of efforts by the temperance movement, which argued that prohibiting alcohol would reduce poverty and societal issues such as immoral sexual behaviour and violence. However, the amendment ultimately led to a surge in illegal alcohol production and increased involvement of criminal organisations, contributing to a shift in public sentiment against Prohibition by the late 1920s. The failure of the Eighteenth Amendment to effectively curb alcohol consumption, coupled with the negative economic implications during the Great Depression, led to its eventual repeal.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name of Amendment | Twenty-first Amendment |
| Date of Ratification | 5th December 1933 |
| Purpose | Repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment |
| Unique Features | Only amendment to repeal a previous amendment; ratified by state conventions, not legislatures |
| Impact | Ended nationwide ban on manufacture, sale, transportation, importation, and exportation of intoxicating liquors; Supreme Court rulings on states' regulatory powers over alcohol |
| Preceding Events | Public sentiment turned against Prohibition in the 1920s; Franklin D. Roosevelt's 1932 election victory included a plan to repeal |
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What You'll Learn
Eighteenth Amendment's prohibition of alcohol
The Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which established the prohibition of alcohol, was passed by Congress on December 18, 1917, and ratified on January 16, 1919. It prohibited the manufacture, sale, distribution, and transportation of alcohol for beverage purposes across the country. However, it did not outlaw the consumption, possession, or production of alcohol for private personal use.
The Eighteenth Amendment was the culmination of decades of efforts by the temperance movement, which argued that banning the sale of alcohol would eliminate poverty and other societal problems such as immoral sexual behaviour, violence, political corruption, domestic violence, and prostitution. In the years leading up to the amendment, many state legislatures had already enacted statewide prohibition, and the Anti-Saloon League, along with various churches, played a significant role in advocating for these laws.
The immediate impact of the Eighteenth Amendment appeared positive, with a decline in crimes related to alcohol consumption. However, as the 1920s progressed, illegal alcohol production increased to meet rising demand. The illegal alcohol industry also became increasingly tied to organised crime groups, such as the Chicago Outfit led by Al Capone, who bribed businesses, political leaders, and police departments with illegal alcohol. This hindered the enforcement of the amendment and changed public perception of the amendment from generally positive to negative by the end of the 1920s.
Public sentiment turned against Prohibition during the 1920s, and the Great Depression further hastened its demise. Opponents argued that the ban on alcohol denied jobs to the unemployed and revenue to the government. The nonpartisan Association Against the Prohibition Amendment (AAPA) also contributed to public disillusionment. In 1932, Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Democratic presidential nominee, included a plan to repeal the Eighteenth Amendment in his platform, and his victory that November sealed the fate of Prohibition. On December 5, 1933, the Twenty-first Amendment was ratified, repealing the Eighteenth Amendment and ending Prohibition. Mississippi was the last state to lift all its Prohibition-era laws in 1966, while Kansas lifted its ban on public bars in 1987.
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Twenty-First Amendment's repeal process
The Twenty-First Amendment to the United States Constitution was proposed by the 72nd Congress on February 20, 1933, and was ratified by the requisite number of states on December 5, 1933. It is the only amendment out of 27 amendments to the U.S. Constitution that repealed a prior amendment. The Twenty-First Amendment repealed the Eighteenth Amendment, which had mandated a nationwide prohibition on alcohol.
The Eighteenth Amendment was ratified on January 16, 1919, after years of advocacy by the temperance movement. The enactment of the Volstead Act established federal enforcement of the nationwide prohibition on alcohol. However, as many Americans continued to drink despite the amendment, Prohibition gave rise to a profitable black market for alcohol, fueling the rise of organized crime. Throughout the 1920s, Americans increasingly viewed Prohibition as unenforceable, and a political movement for its repeal grew.
The Twenty-First Amendment expressly repealed the Eighteenth Amendment in its Section 1. Section 2 of the Twenty-First Amendment banned the importation of alcohol into states and territories that prohibited the importation or consumption of alcohol. The amendment also included a provision that allowed each state to enact measures that its citizens believed were appropriate to address the health and safety effects of alcohol use.
The Twenty-First Amendment did not repeal the Export-Import Clause or the Commerce Clause. The Supreme Court has addressed the scope of the Twenty-First Amendment in several cases, including those involving the Dormant Commerce Clause and the regulation of alcoholic beverages by states.
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Supreme Court's interpretation of the Twenty-First Amendment
The Twenty-First Amendment to the US Constitution, ratified on December 5, 1933, repealed the Eighteenth Amendment, which had established a nationwide ban on the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcohol. The Twenty-First Amendment is unique in that it is the only constitutional amendment that serves to repeal a previous amendment.
The Supreme Court has interpreted the Twenty-First Amendment in several ways, with rulings impacting the Commerce Clause, the Equal Protection Clause, and the Freedom of Speech Clause. The Court has also clarified the amendment's relationship with other constitutional provisions, such as the Supremacy Clause and the Establishment Clause.
One of the key interpretations of the Twenty-First Amendment by the Supreme Court relates to the Commerce Clause. The Commerce Clause gives Congress the power to "regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states, and with the Indian tribes." In the context of the Twenty-First Amendment, the Court has held that the amendment created an exception to the normal operation of the Commerce Clause, allowing states to have more regulatory power over alcohol than they would otherwise have under the Commerce Clause alone. This interpretation has been supported by cases such as State Board of Equalization v. Young's Market Co. and South Dakota v. Dole.
Another interpretation of the Twenty-First Amendment by the Supreme Court relates to the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. In Craig v. Boren (1976), the Court found that the Twenty-First Amendment did not affect the analysis under the Equal Protection Clause. The Court rejected an equal protection claim, stating that a classification recognized by the Twenty-First Amendment cannot be deemed forbidden by the Fourteenth Amendment.
The Supreme Court has also considered the impact of the Twenty-First Amendment on the Freedom of Speech Clause of the First Amendment. In 44 Liquormart, Inc. v. Rhode Island (1996), the Court addressed the relationship between the two amendments. While the specific outcome of this case is unclear, it likely dealt with the ability of states to regulate alcohol advertising under the Twenty-First Amendment, potentially limiting the Freedom of Speech in this context.
The Twenty-First Amendment has also been interpreted by the courts as giving broad authority over the regulation of alcoholic beverages to the states, limiting the power of the national government to intrude upon state alcohol beverage control policies. This interpretation has resulted in variations in the availability, pricing, and terms and conditions under which alcoholic beverages can be obtained across the country.
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Public sentiment turning against Prohibition
Public sentiment began to turn against Prohibition in the 1920s, with the Great Depression hastening its demise. Opponents of Prohibition argued that the ban on alcohol denied jobs to the unemployed and much-needed revenue to the government. The Anti-Saloon League (ASL), which had been a powerful force in the adoption of the Eighteenth Amendment, was no longer as influential, with many Americans no longer supporting Prohibition by the early 1930s.
The leading anti-prohibitionist organisation of the 1920s was the Association Against the Prohibition Amendment (AAPA), supported mainly by conservative businessmen who objected to the increased power of the federal government. The AAPA's arguments, however, did not resonate with voters during the decade. The Woman's Christian Temperance Union was another group that had lobbied for the ban on the sale, manufacture, and distribution of alcoholic beverages.
The Eighteenth Amendment was also impacted by its ties to organised crime. Although there was an overall decline in alcohol-related crimes in the early years of the 1920s, illegal alcohol production increased to meet demand, and illegal alcohol production centres grew ties with organised crime. This allowed criminal organisations to bribe businesses, political leaders, and police departments with illegal alcohol, making it difficult to enforce the Eighteenth Amendment.
The Eighteenth Amendment was also criticised for its failure to prevent the mass distribution of alcoholic beverages. The phrase "intoxicating liquor" was widely understood to exclude beer and wine, and their inclusion in Prohibition surprised many.
The 1932 Democratic presidential nominee, Franklin D. Roosevelt, called for the repeal of Prohibition. Roosevelt's victory in November 1932 led to the end of Prohibition. In February 1933, Congress proposed the Twenty-first Amendment, which repealed the Eighteenth Amendment and allowed the sale of beer.
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The Great Depression's impact on Prohibition
The Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which established the prohibition of alcohol, was ratified on January 16, 1919, and was in force until December 5, 1933. The Twenty-first Amendment, which repealed the Eighteenth Amendment, was ratified on the same day. The Eighteenth Amendment was the product of decades of efforts by the temperance movement, which held that a ban on the sale of alcohol would eliminate poverty and ameliorate societal problems such as immoral sexual behaviour and violence.
During the Roaring Twenties, Prohibition seemed to be a permanent fixture. However, public sentiment began to turn against it by the late 1920s, and the Great Depression only hastened its demise. The Eighteenth Amendment had already forced an estimated 250,000 alcohol industry employees out of work, and with the Wall Street Crash of 1929 rendering a quarter of the US labour force jobless, the ban on alcohol was seen as absurd. The federal government was also desperate for revenue, having forfeited an estimated $11 billion in alcohol-related taxes over the course of Prohibition. The anti-Prohibition activists now had a powerful jobs and taxes argument at their disposal.
The nonpartisan Association Against the Prohibition Amendment (AAPA) also added to public disillusionment. In 1932, the platform of Democratic presidential candidate Franklin D. Roosevelt included a plan for repealing the Eighteenth Amendment, and his victory that November led to the end of Prohibition. In February 1933, Congress adopted a resolution proposing the Twenty-first Amendment, which repealed the Eighteenth Amendment and modified the Volstead Act to permit the sale of beer.
The repeal of Prohibition funded much of Roosevelt's New Deal, with alcohol and other excise taxes bringing in $1.35 billion, nearly half the federal government’s total revenue, in 1934. It also helped tame unemployment, as the brewing and distilling industries were the fifth or sixth largest employers in America before Prohibition. The repeal of Prohibition also allowed the resumption of alcohol production in cities such as St. Louis, which was one of the most important alcohol producers before Prohibition.
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Frequently asked questions
The Eighteenth Amendment, which established a nationwide ban on the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcohol, was repealed by the Twenty-first Amendment in 1933.
The Eighteenth Amendment led to a sudden surge in illegal alcohol manufacturing and increased involvement of criminal organizations in the alcohol production and distribution business. There was also a rise in gambling and prostitution during the Prohibition Era. Initially, there was a decline in crimes related to alcohol consumption, but over time, illegal alcohol production increased to meet the growing demand.
Public sentiment turned against Prohibition by the late 1920s, and the Great Depression further hastened its demise as people argued that the ban denied jobs to the unemployed and revenue to the government. The nonpartisan Association Against the Prohibition Amendment (AAPA) also contributed to public disillusionment. Franklin D. Roosevelt's victory in the 1932 presidential election, with a platform that included repealing the amendment, ultimately led to the end of Prohibition.
The Twenty-first Amendment is unique in that it is the only amendment that was ratified, not by the legislatures of the states, but by state ratifying conventions. The Supreme Court has interpreted the amendment expansively, granting states broad authority to regulate the importation, transportation, sale, distribution, and use of alcoholic beverages within their jurisdictions.
