Chapter 24: The Great Depression and the New Deal

Outline

Hard times

oThe bull market

Stock market resembled a sporting arena

Millions following stock prices

Business leaders and economists told Americans it was their duty to buy stocks

John J. Raskob

Chairman of the board of GM

Wrote an article stating that a person who invested $15 in a good common stock per month would have $80,000 within 20 years

Bull market of the 1920s

Stock prices increased at twice the rate of industrial production

Paper value outran real value

4 million Americans owned stocks

Had been lured into the market through margin accounts

oAllowed investors to purchase stocks by making a small down payment and borrowing the rest from a broker

oThe Crash

The Wall Street crash if 1929 was not a one or two day catastrophe

It was a steep slide

Bull market peaked in early September

Prices lowered

October 23

Dow Jones industrials lost 21 points in one hour

Large investors concluded that the boom was over

October 28

Dow lost 28 points (13% of its value)

October 29, Black Tuesday

More than 16 million shares were traded as panic selling took hold

The markets foundation of credit crumbled

Based on margin debt

Many investors with margin accounts had no choice but to sell when the stock values fell

Shares themselves represented the security for their loans

More money had to be put up to cover the loans when prices declined

Mid-November

$30 billion in the market price of stocks had been wiped out

Half of the value of stocks listed inThe New York Timeswas lost within 10 weeks

Political and economic leaders downplayed the impact of the crash

Andrew Mellon

It will purge the rottenness out of the system High costs of living and high living will come down. People will work harder, live a more moral life. Values will be adjusted, and enterprising people will pick up the wrecks from less competent people

oUnderlying Weaknesses

The economy after the crash became less resistant to existing problems

Workers and consumers received too small a share of the enormous increases in labor productivity

o1923-1929: manufacturing output per worker-hour increased by 32%

oWages only rose 8% during the same time

oRise in productivity encouraged overproduction

Farmers hadnt regained their prosperity from the World War I years

Suffered from declining prices, drop in exports, and large debts incurred by wartime expansion

Unequal distribution of income and wealth

1929: top .1% of Americans had and aggregate income equal to the bottom 42%

Top 5% of Americans received 30% of the nations income

Bottom 60% got only 26% of nations income

80% of the nation had no savings

.5% of Americans owned 32.4% of net wealth of the entire population

Manufacturers decreased their production and laid off workers

Layoffs brought further declines in consumer spending

oPrompted another round of production cutbacks

Consumers had less to spend

Businesses were hesitant to expand

Banks began to fail as depositors withdrew their uninsured funds

Thousands of families lost their savings

oMass Unemployment

Unemployment insurance did not exist; public relief was inadequate

Loss of a job meant economic catastrophe for workers

Unemployment across America became a sign of a deepening depression

1930; Department of Labor

9% of the labor force was out of work

Doubled by 1931

By 1933, more than of workers didnt have jobs

***no statistics tell how long these people were without work or if they had part-time jobs***

Many Americans blamed themselves for their failure in finding work

Feelings of shame, guilt, inadequacy, uselessness, and despair

Joblessness was most difficult for men between 35-55

Family responsibilities were heaviest on these men

Unemployment upset the psychological balance in many families by undermining the traditional authority of the male

Women found it easier to hold onto jobs

Wages were lower

Summed up strains found in families

Fathers feel they have lost their prestige in the home; there is much nagging, mothers nag at the fathers, parents nag at the children. Children of working age who earn meager salaries find it hard to turn over all their earning and deny themselves even the greatest necessities as a result leave home

oHoovers Failure

Companies lacked the money and resources to deal with the worsening situation

Detroit and Chicago

50% unemployment by 1932

Los Angeles

70,000 nonresident jobless and homeless men

Hoover failed to respond to human suffering

Administered large-scale humanitarian efforts during WWI with efficiency, but failed to face the facts of the Depression

1931 State of the Union Address

Our people are providing against distress from unemployment in true American fashion by magnificent response to public appeal and by action of the local governments

Resisted calls from Congress

Wanted a greater federal role in relief efforts or public works projects

Worried about injuring the initiative and enterprise of the American people

The Presidents Emergency Committee for Unemployment (1930) and the Presidents Organization for Unemployment Relief (POUR)

Encouraged local groups to raise money to help the unemployed

Plan for recovery centered on restoring business confidence

Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC)

Based on the War Finance Corporation of the WWI years

Made government credit available to banks, railroads, insurance companies

Stimulated economic activity

Assumed the credit problem was one of supply rather than demand

1932; Democrats pushed through the Emergency Relief Act

Authorized the RFC to lend $300 million to states that had exhausted their own relief funds

Hoover reluctantly signed the bill

oProtest and the Election of 1932

March 7

Communist organizers led a march of auto workers and unemployed for the Ford River Rouge factory

oFord-controlled police fired tear gas and bullets

oKilled four and wounded 50 others

Farmers Holiday Associations

oDesperate farmers in Iowa

oAimed to raise prices by refusing to sell product

o1,500 farmers turned back cargo trucks outside Sious City

Dumped milk and other perishables into ditches

Bonus Army

oProtest descending on Washington D.C. in 1932

oVeterans who were given bonds after WWI demanded immediate payment of the bonus in cash

oBy the summer, they camped out all over the capital city

oHouse passed a bill for immediate payment

Senate rejected the bill, most of the veterans left

oJuly

General Douglas MacArthur forcibly evicted the remaining veterans from their encampment

oProvided the most disturbing evidence of the failure of Hoovers administration

1932; Democrats nominated Franklin D. Roosevelt as their candidate

oI pledge you, I pledge myself, to a new deal for the American people

oRoosevelts plans for recovery were vague

oRoosevelt won the election by a landslide

oDemocrats won big majorities in both the House and the Senate

FDR and the First New Deal

oFDR the man

Born in 1882 in Dutchess Country, New York

Was an only child

His mother, Sara Delano, was the dominant figure in his childhood

Roosevelts education reinforced the aristocratic values of his family

Groton

Harvard

Columbia Law School

He believed in:

A strong sense of civic duty

The importance of competitive athletics

Commitment to public service

In 1905, FDR married Eleanor Roosevelt(distant cousin)

Niece of Theodore Roosevelt

Elected as a Democrat to the NY State Senate in 1910

Was assistant navy secretary from 1913-1920

Summer of 1921:

FDR gets polio

oWas told he would never walk again without support

Eleanor encouraged him to fight his handicap and continue his political career

Once I spent two years lying in bed trying to move my big toe, anything else seems easy

Governor of New York in 1928:

Instituting unemployment insurance

Strengthened child labor laws

Provided tax relief for farmers

Provided pensions for the old

Set up a Temporary Emergency Relief Administration

Set up a group of key advisers; the brains trust: rejected the old progressive dream of re-creating an ideal society

oRaymond Moley

oRexford G. Tugwell

oAdolf A. Berle

oSamuel Rosenman

oBasil OConnor

oFelix Frankfurter

oRestoring Confidence

Roosevelt conveyed a sense of optimism

Helped restore the shaken confidence of the nation

Called for a four day bank holiday

Help the countrys ailing financial system

More than 1,300 banks failed in 1930

Contemporary investigations revealed

oIllegal loans to bank officials

oTax evasion that helped erode public confidence in the banking system

Between election day and the inauguration the bank system had come close to shutting down altogether

oDue to widespread bank failures and hoarding of currency

Fireside chat

Radio broadcasts that became a standard part of Roosevelts political technique

Were enormously successful

Gave courage to Americans

Communicated a sense of compassion from the White House

Emergency Banking Act

Gave the president broad powers over all banking transactions and foreign exchange

Authorized healthy banks to reopen under licenses from the Treasury Department

Provided greater federal authority to be present in managing the affairs of failed banks

oThe hundred days

March to June 1933

The Hundred Days

FDR pushed a number of acts through Congress

oDesigned to combat various aspects of the Depression

New Deal was no unified program to end the Depression

oImprovised series of reform and relief measures

Some contradicted each other

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)

oUnemployment relief effort

oProvided work for jobless young men in protecting and conserving the nations natural resources

Road construction

Reforestation

Flood control

National park improvements

oWorkers received room and board and $30 a month

Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA)

o$500 million given from Congress

o the money went as direct relief to the states

oThe rest was distributed on the basis of:

A dollar of federal aid for ever three dollars of state and local funds spent for relief

oEstablishment of work relief projects was left to state and local governments

oHarry Hopkins

Former NYC social worker

Driven by deep moral passion to help the less fortunate

Emerged as a key figure for New Deal relief programs

Agricultural Adjustment Administration (AAA)

oProvided immediate relief to the nations farmers

oEstablished a new federal role in agricultural planning and price setting

oEstablished parity prices for basic farm commodities

Corn, wheat, hogs, etc

Parity pricing

Based on the purchasing power that farmers had enjoyed during the prosperous years of 1909-1914

oIncorporated the principle of subsidy

Farmers received benefit payments in return for reducing acreage or cutting production where surpluses existed

oLandlords often failed to share their AAA payments with tenant farmers

Frequently used benefits to buy tractors and other equipment that displaced sharecroppers

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)

oOne of the most unique projects of the New Deal era

oBuilt dams and power plants

oProduced cheap fertilizer for farmers

oBrought cheap electricity for the first time to thousands of people

oStood as a model of how careful government planning could dramatically improve the social and economic welfare of an underdeveloped region

National Industrial Recovery Act

oEach industry would be self-governed by a code hammered out by representatives of business and labor

oLed by General Hugh Johnson

oSymbolized by the Blue Eagle stamp

oAlmost all the NRA codes were written by the largest firms in any industry

Public Works Administration (PWA)

oLed by Secretary of the Interior Harold Ickes

Authorized $3.3 billion for the construction of roads, public building, and other projects

oIdea was to provide jobs

Stimulate the economy through increased consumer spending

opriming the pump

The government had to prime the economy with jobs for the unemployed

oPWA spent more than $4.2 billion building roads, schools, post offices, bridges, courthouses

Left Turn and the Second New Deal

oHundred Days Legislature package tried to offer something for everybody.

oWashington brought reassurance that the nation was back on track, although the Depression made millions of people think otherwise

oThe New Deal had critics that complained that FDR ruined the traditional boundaries of government action while others argued that Roosevelt hadnt done enough

Roosevelts critics

oRepublican newspapers and the American Liberty League denounced Roosevelt and his advisors.

-They held the administration responsible for what they considered an attack on property rights, the growing welfare state, and the decline of personal liberty.

oAmerican Liberty League

odominated by executives of DuPont and General Motors

-League attracted support from a group of conservative Democrats, including Al Smith

-Al Smith was the former presidential candidate who declared the New Deals laws socialistic.

oLeague supported anti-New Dealers for Congress

oIn the 1934 election, Democrats built up their majorities from 310 to 319 in the House and 60-69 in the Senate

Roosevelts loyal supporters turned critical

oFather Charles E. Coughlin

-attracted a national radio audience of 40 million listeners with sermons attacking wall streets, international bankers, and plutocratic capitalism

-supported Roosevelt and the New Deal at first and tried to build a relationship with the president

-In 1934, he was frustrated with his limited influence on the administration and began attacking FDR.

oNew Deal policies were part of a Communists Conspiracy

-Threatened community autonomy with centralized federal power.

oCouglin broke from the FDR and founded the National Union for Social Justice

oThe movements on the left were very troublesome for Roosevelt for they thought the New Deal was too timid in its measures

End Poverty in California

oUpton Sinclar

-Well known novelist and socialist

-Entered the 1934 Democratic primary party for governor by running EPIC

-Proposed a $50 a month pension for all poor people over 60

-Campaign emphasized the government system of production for use workshops for the unemployed

-Lost a close general election only because the republican candidate received heavy financial and tactical support from Hollywood studio executives and frightened regular Democrats.

Old Age Revolving Pension plan

oCreated by Francis E. Townsend

-Retired doctor

-Created a large following among citizens with this plan

-He called for payments of 200 dollars per month to all people over 60, but had to be spent within 30 days

oAttracted a nationwide following of more than 3 million by 1936

Huey Long

oposed as the greatest potential threat to Roosevelts leadership

oLong captured LAs governor ship in 1928 by attackingthe states oil industry

oHe significantly improves public education, roads, medical care, and other public services

oLong first supported Roosevelt but in 1934, his own presidential ambitions and his impatience with the pace of the New Deal measures led it a break with Roosevelt

Share Our Wealth Society

oOrganized by Huey Long

oIts purpose was to break up the swollen fortunes of America and to spread the wealth among all our people.

ohomestead worth $5000 and a $2500 annual income for everyone was promised by Long

oLongs economics were not clear

oA secret poll of the summer of 1935 stunned the Democratic National Committee by showing that Long might attract three or four million votes

oLongs third-party candidacy was prevented due to his assignation in that September

New Deal in the South and West

Southern Farming and Landholding

oImpact on South and West

Farm programs moved agriculture away from sharecropping and tenant farming

Wage labor and agribusiness

Dam building projects created electricity for Southerners

West got the most payments for welfare, work relief, and loans

New Deal rational resource use

oFarming in the South

1930 less than half of farmers owned land

oSharecroppers

African American farmers were sharecroppers

Half of white farmers

About $100 annually if any

Cotton and tobacco

oAAA

Agricultural Adjustment Administration

Boosted prices by paying farmers to plow under

Take land out of production

Went to mostly large landowners

Planters did not usually share payments with sharecroppers and tenants

oSTFU

Southern Tenant Farmers Union

Founded in 1934

Protested AAA policies

Protested evictions

Called for strikes for higher wages

Challenged landlords for fair share of payments

Six southern states

About 30,000 farmers

Half black

Drew attention but did not change national farm policy

oLabor-saving machinery

Tractors

Mechanical harvesters

oImpacts of Cash Infusion

Lower demand for labor and higher eviction rate

Many migrated to cities in search of work

oHelp of New Deal

Destroyed old sharecropping and tenant system

Helped landowners prosper

Access to government funds

Diversify crops

Consolidate holdings

Work land more efficiently

1 to 2 million sharecroppers would move to bigger cities

Memphis, Birmingham, Chicago, Detroit, etc.

Rural Electrification and Public Works

oEarly 1930s 3% of southerners had electricity

oFarmhouses

No electric lighting

No indoor plumbing

No refrigerators of washing machines

oTennessee Valley Authority

Made electricity available for the first time

Public investment and government planning

Built 16 dams across 800 miles of Tennessee River

Brought flood control and electric power to hundreds of thousands of families

7 southern states

Reduced consumer electric rates

Created landscaped parks

Built public libraries and better school systems

1944 largest power producer in US

Provided luxuries for farmers and families

Radio

Electric lights

The Dust Bowl

oDisaster in the Great Plains in the mid-1930s

oDroughts through early 1930s

oViolent dust storms during droughts

Result of stripping the landscape of vegetation

oGreat Plains became vast wheat factory

oGreat Plains suited for:

Mechanized farming

Gasoline-powered tractors

Harvester-thresher

Disc plows

All increased productivity

oIn 1830, it took 58 hours to ship an acre of wheat to granary

In 1930s, it took less than three hours

oFarmers broke more land to compensate for low wheat prices in 1920s

oNothing to prevent soil erosion

Dust storms blew away tens of millions of acres of topsoil

oEconomic and psychological losses for those who stayed

Kansas, Colorado, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico

Denver journalist called calamity the Dust Bowl

oDifficult for humans and livestock to breathe

Dust pneumonia and other respiratory infections

oDestroyed crops and trees

oTravelers stuck in automobiles and trains

oWorst storms Spring 1935

oIntervention from federal agencies

Resettlement Administration

Direct emergency relief to families

Crop and seed loans

Moratoriums (freezes) on loan payments

Works Progress Administration

Provided temporary jobs

1/5to1/3applied for relief

90% in hardest-hit cities

Agricultural Adjustment Administration

Paid wheat farmers millions of dollars

oFarmers could not grow what they could not sell

oDiversion of soil for different crops

oGovernmental policies

Designed to

Alter land use patterns

Reverse soil erosion

Nourish the return of grasslands

Department of Agriculture

Led by Henry A. Wallace

oSecretary of State

Designed to change farming practices

Soil Conservation Service (SCS)

Researched controlling wind and water erosion

Set up demonstration projects

Offered equipment, supplies, and assistance to farmers in conservation work

Pumped funds into Great Plains

oCreated soil conservation district

Administered conservation regulations locally

oDust Bowl reduced by 1940

From 5 million acres to 4 million acres

New Deal restricted market forces in agriculture

SCS techniques abandoned due to heavy rainfall and WWII

Long-term farming reduced concern for land

oPolicies and organizations had little effect on sharecroppers and tenants

Thousands of sharecropper and tenant families forced off land

Became Okies

About 300,000 people that migrated to California in the 1930s

Included victims of the Dust Bowl but most came from blue-collar and businessmen workers looking to improve economic lot

California had better opportunities

oMore jobs

oHigher wages

oHigher relief payments

Most only found low-paying agriculture jobs in fertile areas

oSan Joaquin and Imperial Valley districts

Discriminated as poor white trash

oStruggles to create communities within migrant labor camps

Improved situation through WWII and demand for labor

oCompetition for Mexican laborers

By 1936, 85-90% of migratory workers were white Americans

Less than 20% before Great Depression

Mexicans who were still employed had decreases in their wages

Southwestern communities sought to deport Mexicans and Mexican Americans

Supported by:

oEmployers

oPrivate charities

oImmigration and Naturalization Service

Little effort to distinguish citizens from aliens

oMost deported children were actually citizens

Most aggressive campaign in Los Angeles County

oShipped out over 13,000 Mexicans by boxcar from 1931-1934

oAbout1/3of LAs 150,000 Mexicans left the city in the early 1930s

Nearly half a million (500,000) total left the United States in the 1930s

Water Policy

oLarge-scale water irrigation projects due to New Deal

Designed for cheaper power and flood prevention

oBureau of Reclamation of the Department of the Interior

Established under the national Reclamation Act of 1902

Originally purposed to create dams and irrigation works

Encourage growth of small farms in arid regions in West

Unsuccessful until 1920s

Focus changed to multipurpose dams to control entire river systems

Boulder (Hoover) Dam

oDesigned to harness Colorado River

Wildest and most isolated Western river

oHad many anticipated effects:

Flood prevention

Irrigation of Imperial Valley in California

Domestic water for southern California

Cheap electricity for Los Angeles and southern Arizona

oHoover opposed public power aspect

Government should not compete with private companies

Contrary to most Westerners

oBelieved cheap public power was critical for development

Roosevelts support for public power gained political backing of West in 1932

oCompleted in 1935

oFunds from Public Works Administration

Total cost was $114 million

Offset by cost of hydroelectric power

Los Angeles aqueduct

o259 miles

o$220 million

oChannel water to growing population

oLake Mead

Created by construction of dam

Worlds largest artificial lake

115 miles up canyon

Helped make Imperial Valley one of the most productive agricultural districts in the world

Boulder Dam transformed Bureau of Reclamation into major federal agency

oHuge resources

oCompleted All-American Canal in 1938

80 mile channel

Connects Colorado River to Imperial Valley

130 mile branch to Coachella Valley

$24 million

Carried flow of water equal to Potomac River

More than 1 million acres of desert land open for cultivation

Fruits

Melons

Vegetables

Cotton

Irrigation projects promised to repay cost of canal in 40 years

Interest-free loan was government subsidy to private growers

oCentral Valley Project (CVP)

Watershed that stretched through California interior

500 miles long and about 125 miles wide

Brought water from Sacramento River in North to arid lands of San Joaquin Valley in South

Completed in 1947

Cost $2.3 billion

Stored and transferred water

Provided

Electricity

flood control

municipal water

cost paid by

federal government

local municipalities

buyers of electric power

proved a boon to large-scale farmers in Sacramento and San Joaquin River Valleys

oGrand Coulee Dam

Northwest of Spokane Washington

Completed in 1941

Designed to

Convert power of Columbia River to cheap electricity

Irrigate uncultivated land

Stimulate economic development of Pacific Northwest

Employed tens of thousands of workers

Pumped millions of dollars into depressed economy

Washington ranked first in per capita federal expenditures from 1933 to 1940

Provided cheapest electricity in US in the long run

Attract new manufacturing to area of previously just lumber and metals

oEnvironmental and human cost

Grand Coulee and other dams reduced Columbia River

Tens of thousands of workers, mostly Mexican, now worked in fertile fields for very low wages

Health suffered from contact with pesticides

Colorado River no longer empties into Pacific Ocean

Built up salt deposits

oWater unfit for drinking or irrigation

Water pollution still plagues river today

A New Deal for Indians

oImportant changes for Indians

1933 Indians lived on reservations

About 320,000 people in about 200 tribes

Mostly in Oklahoma, Arizona, New Mexico, and South Dakota

Indians suffered from poverty worse than any other group

Infant mortality rate was twice that of white people

Diseases were more prevalent on the reservation

oAlcoholism, measles, tuberculosis, etc.

Half of Indians on reservations were landless

oLived with relatives instead

oBIA

Bureau of Indian Affairs

Oldest federal bureaucracy in West

Corruption and mismanagement

Tried to assimilate Indians through education

oInterfered with religious affairs and tribal customs

oMerriam Report

1928

Prepared by Institute for Government Research

Critiqued BIA management

Scathing and widely public

No effort from Hoover to reform BIA

oJohn Collier

Appointed by Roosevelt in 1933

Roots in service and community organizations in eastern slums

Interested in Indians

Spent time with Indians in Taos, New Mexico

Involved with struggle to help Pueblo Indians hold onto tribal lands

Executive secretary of American Indian Defense Association

Driving force behind IRA

oIRA

Indian Recognition Act of 1934

Reversed allotment provisions of Dawes Severalty Act of 1887

Weakened tribal sovereignty

Shifted land from tribes to individuals

Permitted restoration of surplus lands

Allocated funds for purchase of additional land

Sought to restore tribal structure

Wanted to make tribes part of federal government

oTribes that ratified IRA could elect tribal council as legal tribal government

Congress wanted to change Colliers original plan

oIRA approval from Indians

Mixed feelings on reservations

Linguistic barriers made support and communication difficult

Ex. Papagos from Arizona had no word for budget or representative

olaw, constitution, charter, and rule were all the same word

oreservation agent, king, president, and Indian commissioner were all the same word

Approved by 181 tribes

Rejected by 77 tribes

oNavajos

Nations largest tribe

More than 40,000 members

Rejected IRA

Protest against BIA forced reduction of livestock

Part of soil conservation program

oBlamed Navajo sheep for erosion

Threatened to make Lake Mead and the Boulder Dam inoperable

oNavajos believed erosion was due to lack of water and acreage

Navajos took anger out on Collier

oSensitive BIA

BIA more sensitive to Indian culture

Increase in Indians employed in BIA

1933 a few hundred

1940 over 4,600

Indian political autonomy

BIA and Congress interfered with reservation governments

oEspecially in money matters

oDictated and underfunded tribes

oMargold Opinion

Nathan Margold

Lawyer for Department of the Interior

Wrote legal opinion of tribal governments in 1934

oSovereignty except for when limited in Congress Act

Margold Opinion upheld in United States

Led to restoration of tribal rights and land for Indian people in the West

Depression-Era Culture

oAmerican culture in the 1930s, like all other aspects of national life, was profoundly shaped by the Great Depression.

oA New Deal for the Arts

The Depression hit Americas writers, artists, and teachers just as hard as blue-collar workers

In 1935, the WPA allocated $300 million for the unemployed in these fields

Federal Project No. 1

oFederal One

oAn umbrella agency covering writing, theater, music, and the visual arts which proved to be one of the most innovative and successful New Deal programs

oOffered work to desperate artist and intellectuals, enriched the cultural lives of millions, and left a substantial legacy of artistic and cultural production

Federal Writers Project

oAt its height, employed 5,000 writers on a variety of programs

oA popular series of state and city guidebooks, each combining history, folklore, and tourism

oLife in America

Included valuable oral histories of former slaves, studies of ethnic and Indian cultures, and pioneering collections of American songs and folk tales

American writers helped by the Writers Project:

Ralph Ellison

Richard Wright

Margaret Walker

John Cheever

Saul Bellow

Zora Neale Hurston

Federal Theater Project (FTP)

oReached as many as 30 million Americans with its productions under the direction of the dynamic Hallie Flanagan of Vassar College

oSought to expand the audience for theater beyond the regular patrons of the commercial stage

oSuccessful productions:

Living Newspaper

T.S. EliotsMurder in the Cathedral

Maxwell AndersonsValley Force

Orson WellesMacbeth

oBrought vital and exciting theater to millions who had never attended before

Federal Music Project

oUnder Nikolai Sokoloff of the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra

oEmployed 15,000 musicians and financed hundreds of thousands of low priced public concerts by touring orchestras.

oThe Composers Forum Laboratory supported new works by American composers such as Aaron Copland and William Schuman

Other painters who received government assistance through the FAP:

oWillem de Kooning

oJackson Pollock

oLouise Nevelson

Holger Cahill

oDirector of the FAP

oDocumentary impulse

Documentary Impulse

A deep desire to record and communicate the experiences of ordinary Americans

During the 1930s, an enormous number of artists, novelists, journalists, photographers, and filmmakers tried to document the devastation wrought by the Depression in American communities; they also depicted peoples struggles to cope with, and reverse, hard times.

Mainstream media also adapted this stance

The documentary impulse became a prominent style in 1930s cultural expression

Photograph

In 1935, Roy Stryker, chief of the Historical Section of the Resettlement Administration gathered a remarkable group of photographers to help document the work of the agency

Stryker encouraged them to photograph whatever caught their interest, even if the pictures had no direct connection with RA projects

Photographers:

oDorothea Lange

oWalker Evans

oArthur Rothstein

oRussell Lee

oBen Shahn

oMarion Post Wolcott

THE SINGLE MOST SIGNIFICANT VISUAL RECORD OF THE GREAT DEPRESSION

oPhotographers traveled through rural areas, small towns, and migrant labor camps and produced powerful images of despair and resignation as well as hope and resilience

The double vision ^, combining pain with faith, could be found in many other cultural works of the period

oJohn SteinbecksGrapes of Wrath(1939)

Sympathetically portrayed the hardships of Oklahoma Dust Bowl migrants on their way to California

oMargaret Mitchells 1936 bestsellerGone with the Wind

oElizabeth Noble

With real events looming larger than any imagined happenings, documentary films and still photographs, reportage and the like have taken the place once held by grand invention

oJames Rorty, inWhere Life Is Better(1936)

Was encouraged by his cross-country trip

oWaiting for Lefty

Capitalism

For some, the capitalist systemwas the culprit responsible for the Great Depression

Communism

Relatively few Americans became Communists or Socialists in the 1930s at its height, the Communist Party of the United States had perhaps 100,000 membersand many of these remained active for only a brief time

Marxist analysis, with its emphasis on class conflict and the failures of capitalism, had a wide influence on the eras thought and writing

Some writers joined the Communist Party believing it to be the best hope for political revolution

Soviet Union

oAn alternative to an American system that appeared mired in exploitation, racial inequality, and human misery.

Communist writers

oWriters:

Michael Gold (novelist)

Meridel LeSueur (poet)

Granville Hicks (editor)

oSought to radicalize art and literature and celebrated collective struggle over individual achievement

Intellectuals

oA more common pattern for intellectuals, especially when they were young, was brief flirtation with communism

oAfrican American writers, attracted by the Communist Partys militant opposition to lynching, job discrimination, and segregation, briefly joined the party or found their first supportive audiences there

Richard Wright

Ralph Ellison

Langston Hughes

oMany playwrights and actors associated with New Yorks influential Group Theater were part of the Communist Party orbit in those years

Clifford OdetssWaiting for Lefty

Depicted a union organizing drive among taxi drivers

Left-wing influence

oReached its height after 1935 during the Popular Front period

Alarmed by the rise of fascism in Europe, Communists around the word followed the Soviet line of uniting with liberals and all other antifascists

The American Communist Party

Communism is Twentieth-Century Americanism

Communists became strong supporters of Roosevelts New Deal, and their influence was especially strong within various WPA arts projects

Abraham Lincoln Brigade

oAmerican volunteers against fascists

oSense of commitment and sacrifice appealed to millions of Americans sympathetic to the republican cause

Communists and other radicals, known for their dedication and effectiveness, also played a leading role in the difficult CIO unionizing drives in the auto, steel, and electrical industries

oFilm and Radio in the 1930s

Despite the Depression, the mass-culture industry expanded enormously during the 1930s

Played an more integral role than ever in shaping the rhythms and desires of the nations everyday life

Moviegoing itself, usually enjoyed with friends, family, or a date, was perhaps the most significant development of all

Film Genres

Gangster films did very well in the early Depression years

oLittle Caesar(1930), starring Edward G. Robinson

oPublic Enemy(1931) with James Cagney

oThey depicted violent criminals brought to justice by society, but along the way they gave audiences a vicarious exposure to the pleasures of wealth, power, and lawbreaking

Social disorder

oMarx Brothers films

Duck Soup(1933)

A Night at the Opera(1935)

oMae Wests popular comedies

She Done Him Wrong(1933)

Im No Angel(1933)

Movie musicals

oBusby BerkeleysGold Diggersof 1933, and42ndStreet(1933)

Screwball comedies

oClark Gable and Claudette Colbert inIt Happened One Night(1934)

oKatherine Hepburn and Cary Grant inBringing Up Baby(1938)

Socially conscious view of the Depression era

oWarner Brothers studio

I am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932)

Wild Boys of the Road (1933)

Black Legion (1936)

Walt Disney

oMoral tales that stressed keeping order and following the rules

oSnow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1935)

Frank Capra

oMr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936)

oYou Cant Take It with You (1938)

Radio broadcasting emerged as the most powerful medium of communication in the home, profoundly changing the rhythms and routines of everyday life.

National Broadcasting Company (NBC)

Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS)

The Depression actually helped radio expand

The well-financed networks offered an attractive outlet to advertisers seeking a national audience

Radio programming achieved a regularity and professionalism absent in the 1920s, making it much easier for a listener to identify a show with its sponsor

Older cultural forms

oEddie Cantor

oEd Wynn

oKate Smith

oAl Jolson

Amos n Andy

oAdapted the minstrel blackface tradition to the new medium

White comedians

oFreeman Gosden

oCharles Correll

oUsed only their two voices to invent a world of stereotyped African Americans for their millions of listeners

Soap Operas

Aimed mainly at women working in the home, these serials alone constituted 60% of all daytime shows by 1940.

Soaps

oMa Perkins

oHelen Trent

oClara Lou and Em

Revolved around strong, warm female characters who provided advice and strength to weak, indecisive friends and relaives

Thrillers:

oInner Sanctum

oThe Shadow

oEmphasized crime and suspense, made great use of music and sound effects to sharpen their impact

Radio News

Arrived in the 1930s

Showed the mediums potential for direct and immediate coverage of events

Network news and commentary shows multiplied rapidly over the decade

Complex political and economic issues and the impending European crisis fueled a news hunger among Americans

oThe Swing Era

One measure of radios cultural impact was its role in popularizing jazz

Pre-1930s, jazz was heard largely among African Americans and a small coterie of white fans and musicians

Broadcasts of live performances began to expose a broader public to the music

oAs well as radio disc jockeys who played jazz records on their shows

Black Musicians began to enjoy reputations outside of traditional jazz centers like Chicago, Kansas City, and New York

oDuke Ellington

oCount Basie

oBenny Moten

Benny Goodman

oThe key figure in the swing era largely through radio exposure

oA white, classically trained clarinetist had been inspired by African American bandleaders Fletcher Henderson and Don Redman

Purchased arrangements from them and attracted attention on late-Saturday-night broadcasts

oIn 1935, at the Palomar Ballroom in Los Angeles, Goodman made the breakthrough that establishedhis enormous popularity

The young crowd roared its approval and began to dance wildly to Hendersons arrangements

Goodmans music was perfect for doing the jitterbug or lindy hop (dances borrowed from African American culture)

oThe King of Swing

Goodman helped make big-band jazz a hit with millions of teenagers and young adults from all backgrounds

Big band music accounted for the majority of million-selling records

oGoodman

oBasie

oJimmie Lunceford

oArtie Shaw

The Limits of Reform

oIn his second inaugural address, Roosevelt emphasized what still need to be done to remedy effects of the Great Depression

Stunning electoral victory made social reform seem bright

By 1937, the New Deal was in retreat

oCourt Packing

May 1935, Schecter v. United States

The Supreme Court found the National Recovery Administration unconstitutional in its entirety

Early 1936, Butler v. United States

Court invalidated the Agricultural Adjustment Administration, declaring it an unconstitutional attempt at regulating agriculture

Court mostly composed of Republicans over 70 years old

oRoosevelt began looking for ways to get more reform friendly judges on the court

February 1937, FDR asked Congress for legislation that would expand the Supreme Court from 9 justices to a maximum of 15

President empowered to make new appointments whenever an incumbent judge failed to retire upon reaching age 70

Roosevelt argued that age prevented justices from keeping up with their workload

oFew people believed this logic

oNewspapers denounced the court-packing bill

Opposition of conservatives and outraged New Dealers in Congress

oEx. Democratic senator Burton Wheeler

President argued the purpose was to restore the balance of power among the 3 branches of federal government

Battle for bill dragged on, and FDRs claims weakened

When justice Willis Devanter announced plans to retire, Roosevelt had the first chance to make a Court appointment

Court upheld the constitutionality of some key laws from the Second New Deals

Including the Social Security Act and National Labor Relations Act

In August, FDR backed off from his plan and accepted compromise bill that reformed lower court procedures, but left Supreme Court untouched

FDR won a more responsive Court

Court fight weakened Roosevelts relations with Congress

More conservative Democrats felt free to oppose further New Deal measures

oThe Womens Network

Great Depression and New Deal brought significant changes for women in American economics and politics

Women continued to perform unpaid domestic labor within their homes

Work was not covered by Social Security Act

oGrowing minority worked for wages and salaries outside of the act

1940, 25% of the workforce was female

Increase in married working women as a result of hard times

Sexual stereotyping still forced women into low-paying and low-status jobs

New Deal brought measurable, but temporary, increase in womens political influence

New Deal opened possibilities to effect change for women associated with social reform

Womens network was linked by personal friendships and professional connections

Made a presence in national politics and government

Most women in the network had been active in movements promoting suffrage, labor law reform, and welfare programs

Eleanor Roosevelt was a powerful political figure in her own rights

Used her prominence as First Lady to fight for liberal causes she believed in

Revolutionized the role of political wife by taking a position involving no institutional duties, and turning it into a base for independent action

Enjoyed great influence with her husband

Her support for a cause gave the cause instant credibility

Strong supporter of protective labor legislation for women

Convened a White House Conference on the Emergency Needs of Women in 1933

oHelped Ellen Woodward, head of womens projects in the Federal Emergency Relief Administration, find jobs for 100,000 women

In jobs ranging from nursery school teaching to sewing

Worked for anti-lynching legislation, compulsory health insurance, and child labor reform

Fought racial discrimination in New Deal programs

Guardian of human values within the administration

oBuffer between Depression victims and political bureaucracy

Testified before legislative committees, lobbied her husband and Congress, wrote a widely syndicated newspaper column

Closest political ally was Molly Dewon

Dewon was director of the Womens Division of the Democratic Party

oWomen for the first time played a central role in shaping the party platform and running election campaigns

oProved tireless organizer, traveled to cities and towns educating women about Democratic policies and candidates

Dewons success impressed FDR, and he went to her for advice on political appointments

Dewon placed more than 100 women in New Deal programs

Persuaded FDR to appoint Frances Perkins as secretary of labor

oThe first woman cabinet member in US history

oVeteran activist for social welfare and reform

oServed as FDRs industrial commissioner in NY before appointment

oPerkins embodied the gains made by women in appointive offices

oDepartment was responsible for creating the Social Security Act and Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938

Both incorporated protective measures long advocated by women reformers

oDefined feminism as the movement of women to participate in service to society

oNew Deal agencies were spaces for scores of women in the federal bureaucracy

FERA, WPA, Social Security Board

oSocial work profession (roughly 2/3 female in the 1930s) grew rapidly in response to massive relief and welfare programs

oNew Deal for Minorities

African Americans

Always around the bottom of the economic ladder

During the Depression, they suffered disproportionately

oBlack workers were the last hired, first fired

oBecause jobs were scarce during the Depression, domestic service jobs (cooking, janitorial work, elevator opening) were coveted

Roosevelt administration made little effort to combat racism and segregation in American life

oWorked about offending the powerful southern Democratic congressman key for political coalition

oLocal administration of many federal programs meant most New Deal programs accepted discrimination

CCC established separate workers for people with the same jobs

NRA codes tolerated lower wages for black workers

TVA would not hire black Americans

AAA committees in the South reduced acreage and production to boost prices, thousands of black sharecroppers and laborers were forced off the land

Racism was also in the Social Security Act

oExcluded domestics and casual laborers from old-age insurance

Those holding these jobs were mostly African American

FDR issued executive order in 1935 banning discrimination in WPA programs

oBetween 15-20% of WPA employees were black

oThe minimum wage of $12 a week was what allowed many African Americans to survive

FDR appointed many African Americans to second level positions in his administration

oBlack Cabinet

Mexicans

Great Depression reduced their demand for labor

Faced massive layoffs, deepened poverty, and deportation

During the 1930s, 400,000 Mexican nationals and children returned to Mexico

oOften coerced by local officials unwilling to provide them relief, but happy to offer train fare to border towns

Many native born Americans said deporting Mexicans could reduce unemployment for US citizens

oClaims reflected deep racial prejudice

New Deal programs did little to help the Mexicans still in America

oAAA benefited large growers, not stoop laborers

National Labor Relations Act and Social Security Act made no provisions for farm laborers

FERA and WPA at first tried to provide relief and jobs to needy, regardless of citizenship status

oAfter 1937, these reliefs were eliminated

New Deal record for minorities was mixed

African Americans in the cities benefited from the New Deal relief

oThough assistance was not color-blind

New Deal made no attempt to attack deeply rooted patterns of racism and discrimination in American life

Deterioration faced by Mexicans resulted in a reverse exodus

By 1936, for the first time, a majority of black voters switched political allegiances to the Democrats

oEvidence that they supported the direction taken by the New Deals

oThe Roosevelt Recession

Economy had improved by 1937

Unemployment had declined to 14%

Farm prices had improved to 1930 levels

Industrial production was slightly higher than the 1929 mark

Economic traditionalists called for reducing the federal deficit

Grown to over $4 billion in fiscal year 1936

Roosevelt was uneasy about the growing debt, and called for large reductions in federal spending

Particularly in WPA and farm programs

Federal Reserve System worried about inflation and tightened credit policies

Instead of stimulating business, the retrenchment brought a steep recession

The stock market crashed again in August 1937

oIndustrial output and farm prices dropped

oBig increase in unemployment

As conditions worsened, FDR blamed the strike of capital

oClaimed businessmen had refused to invest because they wanted to hurt his prestige

oIn reality, the administrations severe spending cutbacks were mostly responsible for the decline

After 5 years, the New Deal had not brought economic recovery

Through 1937-1938, administration drifted

Roosevelt received conflicting advice

oSome urged a massive antitrust campaign against monopolies

oSome urged a return to the strategy of stimulating the economy with more federal spending

Republican gains in 1938 made new reform efforts tougher to gain

1938 Fair Labor Standards Act

Established the first federal minimum wage and set a maximum workweek of 44 hours for employees engaged in interstate commerce

National Housing Act of 1937 (aka Wagner-Steagall Act)

Funded public housing construction and slum clearance and provided rent subsidies for low-income families

By 1938, the whirlwind of New Deal was over

Conclusion

oNew Deal did little to alter fundamental property relations or distribution of wealth

Programs largely failed to help the most powerless groups in America

Changed many areas of American life

oNew Deal increased the role of federal government in American lives and communities

Western and southern communities were transformed through federal intervention

Relief programs established framework for welfare state

oEfforts to end racial and gender discrimination were modest at best