Prohibition Party of New York

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An article by Hornell Evening Tribune covering the Prohibition Party of New York
http://www.eveningtribune.com/news/20171203/prohibition-party-like-its-1920

The Prohibition Party has had a national organization continuously from its founding in 1869 to present day, making it the oldest living third party in the United States.
The party has been bolstered by some recent success, seeing a resurgent growth in membership and prominence. In 2016, presidential candidate Jim Hedges received the party’s highest presidential election result since 1988.
In New York State, party leadership began to reestablish the party organization following its 2017 National Conference in June.
“The Prohibition Party of New York is currently in its early stages of organization building. We are working to expand our messaging in the state, recruit new members, and form connections with individuals and groups who we share common issues with,” outlined Jonathan Makeley, organizer for the Prohibition Party of New York.
While many view prohibition as a failed and closed chapter of American history, organizers like Makeley keep the faith.
“Unfortunately, many people believe the inaccurate myth that National Prohibition was a failure, but the reality was more complex. National Prohibition achieved the largest reduction in drinking in our nation’s history, it helped reduce many forms of crime that were fueled by alcohol use, in many areas of the country it was well enforced, plenty of children who previously had to work to support the family due to parents with drinking problems saw their parents sober up and were able to afford to go to school, average working class people saw increased savings and economic fortunes and were better able to whether the Great Depression. Though not everything worked out ideally, and an anti-prohibition movement fueled by wealthy special interests undermined and repealed National Prohibition, there were still positive aspects and there is still potential to succeed,” he said in correspondences with The Spectator.
Makeley pointed to several historic examples of movements taking time to establish.
“Great changes to society don’t always completely succeed on the first attempt. For instance, it took France five attempts at forming a democratic government to get to where they are now, after the abolition of slavery you had the civil rights movement to continue the effort for equality, and the U.S. constitution is our second national constitution,” he said.
Organizers are whole heartedly fueled by the dangers of alcohol abuse to the state, nation and especially families. Alcohol use kills 88,000 Americans a year (more than are killed by opioids), nearly 1/7th of American adults are estimated to have alcohol use disorders, and our society loses $249 billion a year from the social, medical, and economic damages of alcohol use.

Recent state support for expanding the beer, wine and hard cider industries has further incited organizers to rally support for prohibition.
“We object to the state’s support of the alcohol industry. We consider it unethical that the state is supporting an industry that causes such great harm to people in New York, and those politicians who have supported this have acted contrary to their duties as public servants. The growth of the alcohol industry is based on expanding drinking, which will increase the overall negative effects of alcohol use. Contrary to what the alcohol industry claims, they do not help the economy overall. The effects of alcohol use cost our state over $16 billion a year in damages. For every dollar the alcohol industry pays in taxes, the government spends three dollars just treating its share of the medical costs of alcohol induced illnesses. Growing the alcohol industry actually means making our state sicker, poorer, and more highly taxed,” Makeley stated.
Beyond the issue of alcohol abuse, Makeley says the party’s reform minded culture should appeal to the masses.
“The Prohibition Party acts as a force for promoting social and political reform, we encourage the government to fulfill its responsibilities as a servant of the people and promote policies to promote the wellbeing of people. Our party helped achieve important changes such as establishing women’s suffrage, creating child labor laws, and the direct election of senators. We continue to do this, in encouraging policies to reduce the harm of alcohol and other drugs, encouraging states to establish systems of free college education, supporting the establishment of strong ethics laws for public officials, encouraging the state to reform its fiscal system to reduce the burden of property taxes, and other such policy advocacy,” he stated.
Some municipal authorities are taking action on their own to curb the promotion of alcohol. Events such as a recent transit authority decision to stop alcohol advertising on their buses and train stations, and the efforts of people in the Allentown neighborhood of Buffalo to stop the addition of any new bars and decrease them by attrition, help show that there are people in New York who are willing to engage in activism.
The party campaigned hard over the summer and fall, encouraging voters to endorse a constitutional convention, where it may have gained some influence, but the ballot measure was unsuccessful.
The party now turns its attentions to the divisive nature of the two major parties in hopes of recruiting new members.

“We have also seen that many in the public are becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the two major parties and with elected officials who favor the interests of their donors at the expense of the public. And if we can reach them, we’re convinced that a fair number of them would want to join a party that advocates for their wellbeing and prosperity, and that offers a responsible, moral sense of governance,” Makeley said.
Since the Prohibition Party of New York was reestablished earlier this year it has yet to field candidates in the state, but will soon in many local races across the state. Nationally, the Prohibition Party plans to field candidates for various offices. Notably, in Mississippi and Tennessee in 2018. Without ballot status in New York State, party candidates will have to secure signatures through independent nomination petitions.
To learn more about the Prohibition Party of New York, visit their website www.newyorkprohibition.wixsite.com/new-york-prohibition, email leadership at [email protected]; or to learn more about the national Prohibition Party, visit their website www.prohibitionparty.org/

I was very much aware of how prohibition was not the failure that it had been made out to be, especially since so many medicines meant for children were primarily alcohol, and thus only served to create underaged alcoholics. Plus, the women's sufferance movement, and child labor laws found strong allies with the prohibition party, and that good can't be underestimated. But in the end, prohibition ended because consenting adults wanted the freedom to get drunk, or at least just to enjoy a drink from time to time.

Well one thing that prohibition helped along, was to take an ethnic minority criminal organisation that pretty much kept to it's own ethnicity, and was which was most likey to die out in a few geneerations, and give it a new lease on life, and make it a houshold word. --The Mafia.