2015 #1920s , #AlCapone , #alcohol , #gangsters , #prohibition , #speakeasy 0 Comments

Ameerah was born in 1907 in Manhattan, New York. She was the only child born to a prominent family. Her parents were elitist high-hats, who only cared about their social status. In 1925, at the age of eighteen, she finally had enough of them treating her like a puppet. She detested their snobbish attitudes and rebelled against them.

Ameerah was a flapper gal. She drank, she smoked and was the best hoofer in town. Because she knew how to dance so well, she was offered a job at a speakeasy, making a lot of dough. Of course, this was during prohibition when drinking was illegal and women who smoked were frowned upon. Ameerah didn't give a shit about that.

Some birds cannot be caged, and I'm one of them.

Prohibition:

Prohibition began on January 16, 1920. From then on, it was illegal to have alcohol.

America went dry.

The 18^th amendment prohibited the manufacture, sale, and possession of alcohol in the U.S. This law was an epic failure. Overnight people became criminals, hiding liquor in false books, eggshells, hollow canes, baby carriages, teddy bears . . . Women even hid alcohol beneath their dresses with a garter flask.

Yes, folks, civil disobedience was born.

Prohibition was difficult to enforce because of the widespread smuggling of illicit liquor. Law enforcement was unable to suppress it. People drank more during this time. Organized crime increased and gangsters got richer. A whole underworld of mobsters grew and big city mob bosses, such as Al Capone, rose to power. They fought over the control of liquor sales and other illegal activities such as prostitution and gambling. Violence was on the rise, all because of a stupid law.