Oklahoma goes wet: The repeal of prohibition (Eagleton Institute cases in practical politics, case 24)

In the late 1950's Oklahomans fought a tough, emotionally charged campaign over the repeal of state-prohibition, a policy that was included in the original state constitution when it entered the Union in 1907. The supporters of prohibition, the Drys, saw the battle in Biblical terms -- in their view abstention from alcoholic beverages was a biblical mandate and the attempt to repeal that mandate was nothing less than an evil attempt to undermine morality. Their opponents, the Wets, saw the issue entirely in social and economic terms, not as a matter of good vs. evil. The Wet position was that social and government policy should allow individual choice. The struggle between these two forces was, for all practical purposes, the last expression of the American Temperance movement, a church-based movement that commenced in the 1850's and continued into 1960's. The movement produced many colorful characters and public policies like Carrie Nation and her ax handle, the Anti-Saloon League, Al Capone and the bootlegging mobs, and the 18th and 21st Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Oklahoma's repeal was the final defeat in their attempt to exorcise "Demon Rum" with the law. The authors of this study were on the faculty of Oklahoma State University during the repeal fight. They were able to interview the leading actors and write a on-the-scene account of this moment in American history.