The Twenty-first Amendment to the United States Constitution repealed the Eighteenth Amendment, which had mandated the prohibition of alcohol. Congress first proposed repeal of Prohibition on February 20, 1933, sending the amendment to the states for ratification. Michigan became the first state to ratify the Twenty-first Amendment on April 10. But it was not until December 5, 1933, when Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Utah all ratified it on the same day, that three-quarters of the states approved the repeal of Prohibition, making it part of the Constitution.
Prohibition had begun thirteen years earlier, on January 17, 1920. Its ultimate effect on alcohol consumption in the US is still debated. Regardless, most Americans, including some of the biggest initial supporters, had come to view Prohibition as a failure. Alcohol was still widely available on the black market, which helped fund and fuel the growth of organized crime. Prohibition also had devastating effects on the economy, not only shutting down breweries, distilleries, and liquor stores, but also lowering the demand for key crops like corn and wheat, which caused farm prices to drop significantly. Federal, state, and local governments also lost the revenue from taxes on the production and sale of liquor.
By 1932, the Great Depression had reached some of its darkest days. And many people laid part of the blame on Prohibition. Moreover, politicians recognized that the increased revenue from renewed taxation would allow them to provide more services to citizens in need and otherwise bolster the economy. Thus, in that year’s presidential election, both the Democrats and the Republicans supported an end to federal prohibition.
Of course, the American people elected Franklin Delano Roosevelt and ushered in a Democratic Congress. Shortly after that Congress proposed the repeal of Prohibition, Roosevelt signed into law the Cullen-Harrison Act, which legalized beer and wine of 3.2% or less, effective April 7, 1933. Upon signing the bill, Roosevelt famously said, “I think this would be a good time for a beer.” Sales of alcohol did not begin everywhere on April 7, 1933, however, because, under Cullen-Harrison, each state had to pass similar laws to legalize the sale themselves. Nonetheless, throngs of people gathered outside bars and breweries to celebrate the return of alcohol. For this reason, April 7 is known as National Beer Day.
