It's not fully done, and my conclusion is not finished but I would greatly appreciate any comments!
Prohibition (A Failed Experiment)
In March 1918, the sale and distribution of alcohol was chosen to be made illegal for the duration of the war. By 1930, prohibition had officially ended in all provinces except P.E.I. Prohibition failed because people decided to practice their own personal liberty despite the law. People recognized the benefits that prohibition could have brought, but most Canadians at the time frankly didn't want it.
or realized that more bad than good would come from it.
Prohibition was supported in hopes that it would improve society, reduce crime, improve family life and strengthen health. Others believed that alcohol would lead to the nations ultimate downfall. Hon Joseph Chamberlain states that, "DRINK IS THE CURSE OF THE COUNTRY..."(Document 8) At the time it seemed patriotic to sacrifice drink for the good of the country. Bootleggers were one of the biggest supporters of prohibition.An Ontario election pamphlet written in 1926 said, "...The dryer you keep 'em, the more I can sell 'em."(Document 5) The more restraints the government put on alcohol sales, the more flexibility the bootleggers had with their prices. The length of the prohibition reflected on the number of customers bootleggers had available. The harder the govt. made it for people to access alcohol, the more desperate people became for it and the more profitable the bootleggers became. Bootleggers made huge profits since they were one of the few people from whom people could buy alcohol from. Bootleggers were not the only supporters of the Prohibition act, the people like Clifford Rose who pursued the Bootleggers also supported prohibition since,"Without bootleggers we [licence inspectors] wouldn't have jobs..."(Document 11) Licence inspectors like himself couldn't afford to get rid of the bootleggers since without them they would be unemployed.
Prohibition did little to improve society and it actually made more problems than it fixed. Travelling bootleggers made it almost impossible for the Canadian authorities to stop the illegal sale and distribution of alcohol(Document 3). The laws also did little to restrain Canadian's from getting their hands on alcohol. According to Clifford Rose,"...there was just as much rum sold as ever." The Moderation League disagreed that hard working men, "..should be denied such stimulant as he may feel he requires..."(Document 1) It was thought that workers such as fisherman and miners who worked under such stressful conditions deserved to relax after a hard day. Once alcohol was made illegal people felt as if a right was being taken away from them. An editorial by St. Peter's Messenger in 1924, stated that they are not in any way against temperance and self abstinence but that they believe, "The whole idea of legal prohibition is repugnant to the well balanced mind. Because a man injures his health by the abuse of a thing, indifferent in itself, then all men must be forbidden its use."(Document 6) It made no sense that all people should be restricted of the use of something just because some people are affected badly. Others believed that, "the prohibitionists had brought in the present obnoxious act... which was the direct antithesis of what the men were fighting for, personal liberty..." People found it ironic that men from their country were fighting a war for personal liberty when their personal liberty back at home was being taken away.They believed that they should be the ones to decide what they can and can't do. There was much opposition against prohibition since Canadians were living in a time where personal liberty was extremely important. People were shocked that alcohol was seen as a waste of resources when alcohol was more valuable than the grain that it was made with. For example when Quebec repealed the prohibition act, "..the sales [of liquor by the Quebec government] reached a total of $15,000,000 and the profits.. have been applied to building and improving roads [etc.]..."(Document 4) Huge profits were made that would be lost without the sales of liquors, Not to mention the huge improvement of the quality of the alcohol sold to the consumers. John Barleycorn reported that, "Prior to [that]... the rawest kind of spirit was doctored up and sold in bottles bearing labels of well known brands...". (Document 4)
Enforcement of the Prohibition laws were near to impossible. From early on during the period of prohibition it was evident that many people did not agree with it. if According to The Vancouver Sun,"Capt. Ian McKenzie...stated that at least 75 per cent of the male adults of the Province had been guilty of infractions of the Prohibition Laws..."(Document 2). A law can only succeed if the majority of the population supports it. The problem at hand was that majority of people did not support the law. Huge majorities of men found ways to work around these laws to get what they wanted. In doing so they were breaking the law, some argued that,"...the act was making criminals of decent men..."(Document 2) Alcohol still had many other purposes that it could be used for so some provinces decided to make stores were liquor might be purchased for medical and scientific purposes. This system was created with many flaws and for that reason it was abused widely. James Morton, Honest John Oliver [premier of BC 1918-1927] said that, "...it looked as if an epidemic of colds...had struck the country like a plague."(Document 10) It is evident that people abused the doctor's authority to prescribe alcohol. People did whatever they could to get alcohol even if it meant abusing the law. James Morton, Honest John Oliver [premier of BC 1918-1927] described seeing, "queues a quarter of a mile long could be seen waiting their turn to enter the liquor store to get prescriptions filled."(Document 10) You can't put a ban on alcohol unless you lower demand first successfully. That was the biggest flaw of the law. Prohibition was ineffective because alcohol was a commodity that people still wanted.With high need comes supply. Ultimately, "...The question before the people was to decide between Government sale or bootlegger sale."(Document 2)The sudden restraint on the access of that alcohol made people go to great lengths to find new means of accessing it.
Prohibition (A Failed Experiment)
In March 1918, the sale and distribution of alcohol was chosen to be made illegal for the duration of the war. By 1930, prohibition had officially ended in all provinces except P.E.I. Prohibition failed because people decided to practice their own personal liberty despite the law. People recognized the benefits that prohibition could have brought, but most Canadians at the time frankly didn't want it.
or realized that more bad than good would come from it.
Prohibition was supported in hopes that it would improve society, reduce crime, improve family life and strengthen health. Others believed that alcohol would lead to the nations ultimate downfall. Hon Joseph Chamberlain states that, "DRINK IS THE CURSE OF THE COUNTRY..."(Document 8) At the time it seemed patriotic to sacrifice drink for the good of the country. Bootleggers were one of the biggest supporters of prohibition.An Ontario election pamphlet written in 1926 said, "...The dryer you keep 'em, the more I can sell 'em."(Document 5) The more restraints the government put on alcohol sales, the more flexibility the bootleggers had with their prices. The length of the prohibition reflected on the number of customers bootleggers had available. The harder the govt. made it for people to access alcohol, the more desperate people became for it and the more profitable the bootleggers became. Bootleggers made huge profits since they were one of the few people from whom people could buy alcohol from. Bootleggers were not the only supporters of the Prohibition act, the people like Clifford Rose who pursued the Bootleggers also supported prohibition since,"Without bootleggers we [licence inspectors] wouldn't have jobs..."(Document 11) Licence inspectors like himself couldn't afford to get rid of the bootleggers since without them they would be unemployed.
Prohibition did little to improve society and it actually made more problems than it fixed. Travelling bootleggers made it almost impossible for the Canadian authorities to stop the illegal sale and distribution of alcohol(Document 3). The laws also did little to restrain Canadian's from getting their hands on alcohol. According to Clifford Rose,"...there was just as much rum sold as ever." The Moderation League disagreed that hard working men, "..should be denied such stimulant as he may feel he requires..."(Document 1) It was thought that workers such as fisherman and miners who worked under such stressful conditions deserved to relax after a hard day. Once alcohol was made illegal people felt as if a right was being taken away from them. An editorial by St. Peter's Messenger in 1924, stated that they are not in any way against temperance and self abstinence but that they believe, "The whole idea of legal prohibition is repugnant to the well balanced mind. Because a man injures his health by the abuse of a thing, indifferent in itself, then all men must be forbidden its use."(Document 6) It made no sense that all people should be restricted of the use of something just because some people are affected badly. Others believed that, "the prohibitionists had brought in the present obnoxious act... which was the direct antithesis of what the men were fighting for, personal liberty..." People found it ironic that men from their country were fighting a war for personal liberty when their personal liberty back at home was being taken away.They believed that they should be the ones to decide what they can and can't do. There was much opposition against prohibition since Canadians were living in a time where personal liberty was extremely important. People were shocked that alcohol was seen as a waste of resources when alcohol was more valuable than the grain that it was made with. For example when Quebec repealed the prohibition act, "..the sales [of liquor by the Quebec government] reached a total of $15,000,000 and the profits.. have been applied to building and improving roads [etc.]..."(Document 4) Huge profits were made that would be lost without the sales of liquors, Not to mention the huge improvement of the quality of the alcohol sold to the consumers. John Barleycorn reported that, "Prior to [that]... the rawest kind of spirit was doctored up and sold in bottles bearing labels of well known brands...". (Document 4)
Enforcement of the Prohibition laws were near to impossible. From early on during the period of prohibition it was evident that many people did not agree with it. if According to The Vancouver Sun,"Capt. Ian McKenzie...stated that at least 75 per cent of the male adults of the Province had been guilty of infractions of the Prohibition Laws..."(Document 2). A law can only succeed if the majority of the population supports it. The problem at hand was that majority of people did not support the law. Huge majorities of men found ways to work around these laws to get what they wanted. In doing so they were breaking the law, some argued that,"...the act was making criminals of decent men..."(Document 2) Alcohol still had many other purposes that it could be used for so some provinces decided to make stores were liquor might be purchased for medical and scientific purposes. This system was created with many flaws and for that reason it was abused widely. James Morton, Honest John Oliver [premier of BC 1918-1927] said that, "...it looked as if an epidemic of colds...had struck the country like a plague."(Document 10) It is evident that people abused the doctor's authority to prescribe alcohol. People did whatever they could to get alcohol even if it meant abusing the law. James Morton, Honest John Oliver [premier of BC 1918-1927] described seeing, "queues a quarter of a mile long could be seen waiting their turn to enter the liquor store to get prescriptions filled."(Document 10) You can't put a ban on alcohol unless you lower demand first successfully. That was the biggest flaw of the law. Prohibition was ineffective because alcohol was a commodity that people still wanted.With high need comes supply. Ultimately, "...The question before the people was to decide between Government sale or bootlegger sale."(Document 2)The sudden restraint on the access of that alcohol made people go to great lengths to find new means of accessing it.
