What is the Legal Drinking Age in the United States and Why?
that don’t enforce or mandate the 21 year old drinking age law risk losing 10% of their federal funding for highway apportionment, under the Federal Aid Highway Act. Yet, the National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984 has been met with much controversy. It as President Reagan who signed this law into effective in 1984, and many credit Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) with being the most influential proponent for the act. Whether that is true or not, one thing is clear, the act was signed into law after much support from many special interests groups, of which MADD was definitely one. Drinking has long been a government issue, though many do not understand why. In 1919, prohibition effectively prohibited everyone from drinking, regardless of age, and made it criminal to manufacture, sell, possess or consume alcoholic beverages. By 1933, prohibition was repealed, and alcoholic beverages were once again legal to possess and consume, but this prompted many states, cities, and municipali
Many states did change legislation during the Vietnam Era to allow 18 year olds to drink, and most military bases, even in states with 21 minimum drinking ages, would allow people in active military, while on base, to consume alcoholic beverages at 18. Eventually, however, the baby boomers all grew up, and what was good for them was no longer good for their children, and the very people who fought against the legal drinking age at 21 now were fighting for it.
