Carrie Nation: Using an Axe to Close Saloons



If one wants to understand the right-wing religion of today, was the prohibition era. The star character of prohibition was Carry Nation. The Fargo Forum reprinted coverage of Nation's visit to Mitchell, South Dakota, around 1900. She gave a fire breathing speech about the evils of taverns and alcohol to a big crowd. She counted nine saloons in Mitchal that needed to be destroyed by women with axes. 

Alcohol and the saloons that sold it were seen by Nation, and her entourage, as the sources of all sin and evil of that time. Drunkenness, broken homes, absent from work, illnesses and you name it were caused by taverns. She saw the Republican Party as the source of this sin and preached it be taken down.

There was already a prohibition political party but she had no use for its efforts to pass laws against booze. Direct action was her thing. Her reputation as an axe swinging weapon of mass destruction preceded her arrival in Mitchell, SD. Local law enforcement pledged to be on guard. Her time there was without incident apparently.

Carrie Nation died before the fruits of her efforts arrived. Prohibition was passed in the early 1920's. For 16 years the illegal booze business flourished. We can say now Carrie Nation and the 16 years of moralistic piety against alcohol amounted to nothing.  

Today, we have a generation of anti-abortion zealots some of whom have blocked abortion clinics, set fire to them and glued themselves to clinic doors. Others track women who drive to other states to get abortions. They are the modern day axe-wielding Carrie Nations. Other versions of Carrie Nation try to stop schools from giving students access to books or teachers that discuss homosexuality or trans. Take an axe to all of it.

While there remain plenty of Bible thumpers and saloon destroyers, one must conclude they have little effect on what people do in their lives. "Sin" wins the long game.


  

 

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