Politics in the Great Depression

1. Politics in the Great Depression By Joey Terranova, Max Turgeon, and Ben Weyman http://all-that-is-interesting.com

2. There were two political groups that fought on how to solve the great depression. These two groups continue to debate today. • Conservatives – believe in small government and small tax; this means less involvement in the economy (tend to be more business friendly) • Liberals – believe in larger government and more government programs; this means more involvement in the economy Conservatives and Liberals

3. Prostitution • Particularly in the 1930 to 1933 period, prostitution was a topic of widespread comment and concern. Critics drew a direct connection between increasing unemployment and rising rates of vice and crime • claimed that women were becoming prostitutes because more legitimate jobs were unavailable • A sociologist at Brooklyn College noted that African-American women were at greater risk than white women for becoming prostitutes • Less opportunities for African American women • last resort for many women in USA • one of biggest problems1930 to 1933 period • Unemployment caused this Major Issues in the 1930s

4. Films were made in 1930s that perceived prostitutes as wealthy and powerful • influenced depression welfare in women • New Deal had rules against prostitution • Most popular underground "moneymaker" of the 30's • Unemployment became a problem particularly during the post–World War I recession of 1920–1921 and again after the stock market crash of 1929, that its causes and cures became a subject of public concern. Major Issues in the 1930s

5. Crash of 1929 • Crash of October 1929 triggered a chain reaction of bank and business failures that created a larger and more widespread unemployment crisis than had ever been experienced by Americans • Millions were left jobless • African Americans were disproportionally affected by job losses, black activists started boycotts saying "don't buy where you can't work Major Issues in the 1930s http://www.balkanplumbing.com

6. Many of government unemployment policies favored men as primary breadwinner • very hard for women to get jobs over men • some states started unemployment relief programs • These programs went on to be cornerstones for the New Deal • Depression and crash changed Hoovers belief in approach to unemployment Major Issues in the 1930s

7. Herbert Hoover • Herbert Hoover was president during start of the depression • Member of the Republican Party, he was very conservative • Had been a multimillionaire businessman and a successful public official before he became president • Entered the White House at a time of great prosperity in the United States. Americans expected him to lead them on to even better days Leaders of the Great Depression www.history.com

8. Seven months after he took office, the stock market crashed • Hoover was reluctant to interfere with the American economy • He called the depression "a temporary halt in the prosperity of a great people • He depended on companies and industries to solve their own problems • Hoover had believed that the states and local communities should provide relief for jobless workers • The Unemployed needed much more assistance • During Hoover's last four months in office, bank failures and unemployment increased. Congress paid little attention to his recommendations, and President-elect Roosevelt refused to promise support for Hoover's policies stabilization efforts Leaders of the Great Depression

9. Franklin D. Roosevelt • Assumed the presidency during one of the most challenging periods in the country's history • Was a liberal democrat • Great Depression was in full swing and the nation was in crisis. Thirteen million people were unemployed and banks were failing • He began a series of reform programs called the New Deal, setting up agencies to employ young men, assist business and labor, and subsidize home and farm mortgages, as well as help the unemployed Leaders of the Great Depression mrbelloblog.com

10. Criticized for involving the government in areas of society and the economy where it had never been involved before, but many of his ideas helped the nation get through the Depression • He condemned the concentration of ownership in business • He insisted that government must develop "an economic declaration of rights, an economic constitutional order • He attacked the Depression cautiously, however, employing measures approved by conservatives • He strengthened government control over the banking system and initiated agricultural price supports Leaders of the Great Depression

11. The recovery that began in 1933, although not without setbacks, was vigorous and prolonged. • By the middle of 1937 industrial production was close to the 1929 average. • Still, there was considerable concern about the pace of recovery and the level of the economy. • After all, with normal economic growth the levels of industrial production and real output would have been above their 1929 levels in 1937. • Unemployment, moreover, remained stubbornly high. • With a few more years of continued growth the economy might well have recovered fully. • However, another recession, the “recession within the depression,” hit the economy in 1937. Recovery

12. By the trough in 1938 industrial production had fallen almost 60 percent and unemployment had risen once more. • The new Social Security system financed by a tax on wages was instituted in 1935, and the taxes were now put in place. • The Federal Reserve chose at this time to double the required reserve ratios of the banks. • The economic expansion that began in the summer of 1938, however, would last throughout the war and pull the economy completely out of the depression. • Indeed, even before the United States entered the war as an active participant at the end of 1941, fiscal and monetary stimuli had done much to cure the depression. Recovery

13. The New Deal was not able to solve the burning issues of justice and equality for poor people and people of color • Americans who had little to begin with were among the hardest hit by the Great Depression. • People of color faced even greater hardships as they contended with the added burdens of racism and segregation • African Americans were often the “last hired and first fired”; • Unemployment in African-American communities was extremely high, and many families existed on the brink of starvation, especially in the urban South Race and Racism www.mshogue.com

14. Roughly 65 percent of people of color worked in sectors such as tenant farming, migrant farm work, and domestic work. These types of jobs were not covered by most New Deal programs, meaning that these workers were not even eligible for most forms of assistance. • By the early 1930s, close to half of all African-American workers were no longer employed, and the establishment of equal job opportunities had become a crucial issue for the black community • National Recovery Administration (NRA), established in 1933, sought to establish fair rules and codes with regard to wages, prices, and competition in the labor market • White employers tried to find ways around the NRA policy by changing job descriptions so that jobs were not covered by these rules, and many employers simply refused to hire blacks • Overall, other New Deal programs also accepted the status quo and allowed existing discriminatory practices to continue Race and Racism