Which name was used to refer to the law that enacted Prohibition?
| Answer: | The Volstead Act |
The law that enacted Prohibition in the United States was called the Volstead Act. The Volstead Act, formally known as the National Prohibition Act, was passed by Congress on October 28, 1919, and went into effect on January 17, 1920. The Act was named after its sponsor, Andrew Volstead, who was a Republican Congressman from Minnesota. The primary goal of the Volstead Act was to enforce the 18th Amendment to the United States Constitution, which prohibited the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcoholic beverages.
The Volstead Act defined what constituted illegal alcoholic beverages and established penalties for violating Prohibition. It set the legal limit for non-intoxicating beverages at 0.5% alcohol by volume, which meant that most alcoholic beverages were effectively banned. The Act also outlined methods for enforcing Prohibition, including the creation of the Prohibition Bureau within the U.S. Department of Treasury, tasked with investigating and prosecuting violations of the law.
Despite the intentions behind the Volstead Act, Prohibition was met with widespread resistance and led to the rise of speakeasies, bootlegging, and organized crime. The law was difficult to enforce, and many Americans continued to drink illegally during the Prohibition era. Ultimately, the Volstead Act and Prohibition proved to be largely unsuccessful in achieving their goals, and the 18th Amendment was repealed by the 21st Amendment in 1933. The repeal of Prohibition marked the end of the Volstead Act and the return of legal alcohol sales in the United States.