Session #22: Repeal of Prohibition
This installment of The Session is a bit special. Today marks the 75th Anniversary of the 21st Amendment. Who better to host this session than 21st Amendment Brewing. The topic is simple, what does the end of Prohibition mean to you? With a question like that I can’t help but to wander outside the realm of brewing.
Before I go into the larger question, let’s start with what Prohibition did to beer brewing in America. At the passage of the 18th Amendment there were over 1,900 breweries in the United States. The idea that craft brewing is a new trend in America is simply false. This has always been a nation that loves its beer and it took Prohibition to really establish the fizzy yellow lager as the symbol of American brewing. For a great history on Prohibition, Charlie Papazian wrote a great article the other day.
As I said, the topic of Prohibition is one that is bound to take me outside of the realm of beer. This was an Amendment to our constitution , on par with a woman’s right to vote and the end to slavery. This topic by nature requires a broader topic.
First, what is Prohibition? It was nothing more than the imposition of the morality of one section of the public on to the entire nation. One of the great things about this country is our ability to choose the lifestyle we see fit, without the worry of someone else’s definition of right or wrong interfering. This is provided we aren’t harming anyone in the process.
Yet some still feel the need to dictate morality, even after we saw the results of Prohibition. As I mentioned, we lost a part of our national charachter for over 50 years while seeing a rise in gangsterism. Shouldn’t this be evidence enough to keep morality out of the constitution.
Unfortunately, some don’t feel that way and we are in the middle of a battle at the state level regarding similar issue. While it’s hard to imagine a Roaring 20’s, speakeasy like atmosphere resulting from the current state of affairs, I do see a similar end result, being a victory for people’s right to live their life as they choose.
The follow-up question posted by 21st Amendement was “How will you celebrate your right to drink beer?” I think one is pretty easy, I will drink a beer. It’s Friday andI have a bottle of 2007 Alaskan Smoked Porter in my fridge, so that seems like a likely target, but I also have a dinner at a friends house, so we’ll see what options we have there.
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