PROHIBITION AND THE ROARING 20 S 1920 S

PROHIBITION AND THE ROARING 20 S

1920 S ECONOMY § By 1924, the economy recovers and there is a lot less discontent in society • Canada enters a period of post-war prosperity • People begin to have money in their pockets again to spend on luxuries • One thing they aren’t supposed to be spending it on is alcohol. § The 1920 s in Canada is a “dry” era. Prohibition: a law that banned the making, selling or drinking of liquor, came into effect in Ontario in 1916 and all of Canada was dry through the 1920 s

PROHIBITION • Alcohol became a big social issue during the war. Canada held a referendum on prohibition in 1878 under Wilfred Laurier. • All the provinces voted in favour of it except for Quebec who were 81. 2% against it. • Laurier never introduced prohibition at the federal level, he left it up to each province to make their own legislature prohibiting alcohol instead. § Alberta and Ontario enacted prohibition in 1916 (until 1927). Quebec tried it in 1919 but it was repealed quickly because of public opposition • PEI started in 1901 and lasted until 1948! • Prohibition was in effect in the US from 1919 to 1933.

Why prohibition? For Prohibition: Why? Against? Why? Women Affecting families (spousal abuse) Politicians Loss of tax money! Women Christian Temperance Union Not moral, anti-violence United Farm Women of Alberta Results of Prohibition: • Illegal Speakeasies • Bootlegging and Smuggling • Gangsters! Loss of votes! Men Alcohol is a privilege they didn’t want taken away.

NEW SOCIAL ATTITUDES § With the economic boom came new carefree social attitudes § The United States and foreign investors were putting money in Canada’s economy. This gave people more money to spend § One new thing that emerged was the use of “credit” or borrowed money • People were happy the war had ended and so had many hardships • Because of the war, there was a feeling of victory in Canada that helped reunite the provinces.

WHAT DID THEY SPEND THEIR MONEY ON? • Technology became a big part of the 1920 s. § Henry Ford wanted to make automobiles that people could afford. In his factories, he invented the first assembly line system which led to the concept of mass production • Other inventions included the radio, soon followed by motion pictures, the telephone and the airplane § Radio: the radio made everyone more aware of the world by broadcasting advertisements which helped with the creation of a mass market § This was the first sign of early consumerism

FADS § As well as inventions, the roaring 20 s were known for their popularization of fads. • Flappers were the most memorable fad of the 1920 s § Flappers were women who rebelled against the typical portrayal of a woman. They cut their hair short and wore skirts with a hem line above the knee (scandalous!) http: //www. yo utube. com/wa tch? v=y. NAOHt my 4 j 0&safety_ mode=true § In the winter they wore galoshes with the buckles unfastened to create the loudest possible flap § They also behaved “unladylike” by wearing a lot of makeup, drinking, smoking, driving cars and treating sex in a casual manner • They often went to speakeasies to listen to jazz music and dance

http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=k YMb. CKn. HFFc FADS http: //www. youtube. com/watc h? v=j. Vu. ORta. BO_8 Ch § People also became interested in new dances (like the Charleston), fashion, games, and sports. § These fads were inspired by the new social attitudes. Everyone happy, feeling good, social events became so much more popular. • Long races and contests of every kind also became incredibly popular. Non-stop talking, kissing, eating, drinking, and rocking-chair marathons were some of the contests in which people tried to establish records. • Dancing became a real rage where dancers competed for prizes of thousands dollars. Couples dragged themselves around the dance floor with blistered feet and aching backs. One man dropped dead on the dance floor after 87 hours of continuous dancing.

LINGO § • • • Another REALLY popular fad was the use of unusual language and expressions Some of them we still use today, like: the bee’s knees Hooch Crush Gold Digger Baby Heebie-jeebies https: //www. polleverywhere. com/my/polls#!/my/polls Whoopee! Beat it!