How did the mistakes of the people and the government affect and shape the history today? During the 1920’s and 30’s, many of these human errors had great impacts on the politics, environment, and society of the time. These mishaps caused enormous geographic damage of the lands and large amounts of people became homeless, losing everything that they once had. They were forced to look for jobs in order to survive. Throughout the course of this time, the mistakes drastically changed many of the way people lived their lives. From causes such as the prohibition of alcohol, creation of the Dust Bowl and downfall of the Great Depression shaped the American life.

The prohibition of alcohol in 1920 caused many people to have conflicting opinions with the negative effects that came with it. In particular, there was a rise in the black market such as the creation of speakeasies, an establishment that illegally sells alcoholic beverages and made gangsters who ran them very powerful. The act of smuggling alcohol against the law angered the government, leading them into poisoning industrial alcohol and killing 10,000’s of people who drank it. Most importantly, it stripped the freedom and rights from the people when this 18th amendment was passed. All of this caused many conflicts between many groups of pro-prohibition and anti-prohibitionists.  As can be seen, Prohibition created many problems for the society then.
Under those circumstances came the Dust Bowl that blew through the Great Plains. Black, dusty blizzards hit the middle states during the 1930’s. The cause of this disaster first began with the settlers of the 1800’s in the Great Plains that removed the important ground cover of the lands to expand their farming production. This ground cover was crucial because it was what kept the soil from being too loose. Time after time, people continued to remove the ground cover and over cultivate the soil to keep up with their competitors. Consequently, when the Dust Bowl occurred, 12 inches of soil blew away and ruined 35 million acres of farmland. This enormous cloud of dust destroyed millions of acres of property and the lives of the people in the Great Plains.

Not to mention, the Great Depression had a huge impact on how history is interpreted today by the large amount of people that were in debt and suffering. After the worst stock market crash Black Tuesday in 1929, 25 billion dollars were lost, putting many business owners in bankruptcy and U.S. into depression. This economic downturn had many leading factors such as the uneven distribution of the income. Business owners put more money into their production rather than paying higher wages, thus creating more people who couldn’t afford good and produce. There was also the high tariff policy that the U.S followed in order to keep foreign goods out to support the country’s businesses. In 1930, the Hawley Smoot Tariff Act (the highest tariff in the U.S. history) was passed. Some countries interpreted this as a economic warfare and cut back the purchases from the states. All things considered, as the Great Depression struck the nation, the hunger and suffering of more than a million men and women who lost everything increased, with no federal systems of direct relief given by the government for the people. This was an event that changed everything for the people who lived then.

In summary, the 1920’s and 30’s was a time of changes and mistakes that formed history. Prohibition caused many issues with the rise of the black market and gangsters, also including the government’s act of taking away the people’s freedom and rights. Not to mention, the 10,000s of people were killed by drinking poisoned alcohol by the government. The over- cultivated soil in the Great Plains created the Dust Bowl as well, leading to ruined land and the lives of the families. Lastly the poor economic choices of the people and the government created the stock market crash, leading to the Great Depression that had huge effects on the economy, politics and society. It left many people homeless and suffering throughout the years. In the long run, it was these errors the people created that shaped American life.