Prohibitionism

THE PROHIBITION movement works to outlaw the manufacture, sale, and consumption of alcoholic beverages. In the United States, the movement was responsible for the actual prohibition of alcohol by constitutional amendment from 1919 to 1933. Although Prohibition was repealed by a second constitutional amendment in the latter year, the prohibition movement has never completely ceased, and the Prohibition Party continues to field candidates for president and vice president.

The movement drew its impetus from the 19th-century liberation movements, which also included abolitionism and women's suffrage. Many people, especially women, were active in all three causes. The Women's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) was founded in 1874 and continues to exist. Originally, the WCTU crusaded for temperance rather than prohibition. The WCTU defines temperance as moderation in all ...