Chapter 15

A NEW DEAL FIGHTS THE DEPRESSION

FDR beat Hoover in the 1932 election by a landslide…

Also, Democrats won large majorities in the House & Senate.

By the end of 1932, Americans ready for a

change….

ROOSEVELT IN!

HOOVER OUT!

What plans did Roosevelt make in the months leading up to his inauguration?

FDR & his advisors planned programs to end the Depression.

These programs became known as the NEW DEAL.

3 Goals of the New Deal:Relief for the needy.

Economic recovery.

Financial reform.

These laws expanded the federal government’s role in the nation’s

economy.

In the first 100 days, Congress quickly passed

many important laws.

He closed banks to prevent more bank failures & to basically allow

things to calm down.

Roosevelt declares “BANK HOLIDAYS”…

NEW LAWSHow did the following laws attempt to help

our struggling economy?1. Emergency Banking Relief Act 2. Glass-Steagall Act 3. Federal Securities Act- 4. Securities & Exchange

Commission(SEC)

More laws passed by Congress:

Emergency Banking Relief Act – Allowed healthy banks to reopen.

Glass-Steagall Act – It established the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).

Federal Securities Act- Made companies give accurate information in its stock offerings.

Securities & Exchange Commission(SEC) – Regulates stock markets.

Roosevelt & The American PeopleHow did Roosevelt Convey his ideas to the

American People?Fire Side ChatsWas it an effective Tool? Why?

FDR spoke directly to the people in radio talks.He explained the New Deal measures & asked

for public support.These chats did a lot to restore the nation’s

confidence.

FIRESIDE CHATS

How did the New Deal Programs

affect various regions of the United States?

Helping the American People….

Agricultural Adjustment Act(AAA)

Helped to raise crop prices by lowering production.

FARMERSCommunity leaders at meeting to explain and discuss AAA (Agricultural Adjustment Act)

Civilian Conservation Corps(CCC)

Put young men to work building roads & planting trees.

UNEMPLOYEDCCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) boys putting up a fence. Greene County,

Delano, Jack, photographer.

History From VisualsPg 491Consider what the chart reveals about the

photograph.How does racial segregation play a role in

the work programs?How did the experiences of African-

American men differ from whites?

Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA)

Provided direct relief of food, clothing, & cash to the needy.

NEEDYWaiting for relief checks. Calipatria, California. Imperial Valley.

Lange, Dorothea, photographer.

Family lives on public relief funds (1936)Copyright 1997 State Historical Society

of Wisconsin

How did the New Deal support Labor Organizations?

The National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA)

Set codes of fair practice for industries.Guaranteed workers’ right to organize unions

The NIRA set up the …..

WORKERS

Stopped the trend of wage cuts, falling prices, and layoffs.

NRANational Recovery Administration

Home Owners Loan Corporation(HOLC)

Set up to provide government loans to homeowners facing

foreclosure.

HOMEOWNERS

THE NEW DEAL COMES UNDER ATTACK….

How did Liberal and Conservative critics differ in their opposition to the New Deal?

The New Deal financed though deficit spending…spending more $ than the government receives in revenueLiberals believed that the New Deal did not go far enough in helping the poor & reforming the nations economic system.Conservatives believed that the New Deal spent too much $$$ on direct relief and was trying to control businesses and socialize the economy.

DEFICIT SPENDING

It struck down the NIRA & the AAA.

SUPREME COURT found 2 important parts of the New Deal

unconstitutional!!!!!

As justices resigned from the Court, FDR was able to appoint 7 new justices.

Court decisions began to favor the New Deal.

Roosevelt proposed a bill to allow him to appoint more new Supreme Court justices…didn’t

happen, but…

3 critics of FDR were particularly

important…..

He was a Roman Catholic priest who used his popular radio

sermons to criticize Roosevelt.His anti-Jewish view eventually

cost him support.

Father Charles Coughlin

Proposed a pension plan to give monthly payments to the elderly.

Many elderly voters liked Townsend’s plan.

DR. FRANCIS TOWNSEND (right)

Townsend supporters rally in Columbus, Kansas in May 1936.Library of Congress Photo, LC-USF34-004168-E DLC

Senator from Louisiana.Was an early supporter of the New Deal,

but he wanted to become president himself.

He proposed a program called Share Our Wealth.

In 1935, Long was assassinated.

HUEY LONG

Section 2

THE 2ND NEW DEAL TAKES HOLD…

Why did FDR launch the 2nd New Deal?How did Eleanor step out of the traditional

role of the first lady and assisted FDR?

These programs were designed to help poor people.

Eleanor Roosevelt traveled around the country & reported to the president

on the suffering of the poor.She spoke up for women & minorities.

FDR LAUNCHED A 2ND WAVE OF REFORMS….SOMETIMES CALLED

THE SECOND NEW DEAL

ELEANOR ROOSEVELTAmerican First Lady & Humanitarian 1884 - 1962   No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.                                                                                                      —Eleanor Roosevelt

It was the 1st time that labor unions supported a single

candidate. They supported Roosevelt.

Election of 1936 was an overwhelming victory for FDR,

the Democrats, & the New Deal.

Election of ’36 also marked the 1st time most African Americans voted Democratic.

Congress passed laws to replace the 1st AAA that was struck down by the

Supreme Court.

2nd New Deal helped Farmers…

One program paid farmers to use soil conservation measures in managing their land.

Other laws helped sharecroppers & tenant farmers. They provided loans to

help farmers buy land.

New laws also helped migrant workers by providing better housing for them.

New Laws to help FARMERS:

Mature pea field being harvested Oak Park area soils judged most erosive in the world

Soil erosion on a Brown County, Indiana, farm. Jung, Theodor, 1906- photographer.

Soil erosion. Mississippi. Evans, Walker, 1903-1975, photographer

What were the

WPA & NYA ???

ROOSEVELT EXTENDS RELIEF

Set out to create jobs as quickly as possible.

The WPA used millions of workers to build airports, roads, libraries, schools,

& hospitals.Sewing groups made clothes for the

needy.

WORKS PROGRESS ADMINISTRATION

Do you think work programs like the WPA were a valid use of federal money? Why or why not?

Yes: they provided an income to people in need , while producing public works.

No: private businesses, rather than the federal government should provide jobs.

Perception v. RealityPerception v. Reality

Provided aid & part-time jobs to many high school & college

students.This allowed them to get an

education even in tough economic times.

NATIONAL YOUTH ADMINISTRATION

(NYA)

WORKERS

How did the 2nd New Deal help….

WAGNER ACT(National Labor Relations Act)Replaced the NIRA that was struck down by

the Supreme Court.Supported workers’ right to collective

bargaining.Also banned unfair labor practices.The Wagner Act set up the National Labor

Relations Board (NLRB) to enforce these reforms.

Set maximum hours & a minimum wage.

Workweek was 44 hours.Also banned child labor in

factories.

FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT

(1938)

Child Labor

SOCIAL SECURITY ACT

Signing the Social Security Act of 1935

3 Parts of the Social Security Act:

OLD-AGE INSURANCE

Aid to disabled & families w/children

Unemployed workers signing up for unemployment benefits following passage of the Social Security Act. National Archives & Records Administration

UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION

The 2nd New Deal also extended electricity to rural areas through the

REA

RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION

(REA)

Section 3

THE NEW DEAL AFFECTS MANY

GROUPS

More women were appointed to important federal jobs.

WOMEN made some important gains during the

New Deal.Lee, Russell, 1903- photographer.

What impact did her appointment to the cabinet have on the lives of American women?Became 1st female cabinet member as Secretary of Labor.She helped created the Social Security system.

Francis Perkins

Advances for Women Today?

The New Deal Agencies didn’t discriminate in hiring.

This gave women more opportunities…

WPA Sewing Room in Jackson, Mississippi. Courtesy, Mississippi Department of Archives and History

WPA Day Nursery in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, 1936. Courtesy, National Archives

WPA Gardening and Canning Project in Lauderdale County, Mississippi. Courtesy, Mississippi Department of Archives and History

For example, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) hired men

only.

But some government agencies & many businesses didn’t hire

as many women as men.

CCC boys at work"; Prince George Co., V.A

CCC boys surveying thinning area, Black Hills National Forest, South Dakota

Mary McLeod Bethune was an educator who became head of the

Minority Affairs Office of the National Youth Administration

Roosevelt gave a # of African Americans a voice in government.

He was afraid of losing the support of white Southerners

However, FDR didn’t push for full civil rights for African Americans.

However, they received few benefits from New Deal programs.

Mexican Americans tended to support the N.D…..

FDR made John Collier commissioner on Indian affairs

Native Americans got support from the New Deal

Roosevelt got votes from Southern whites, city people, African Americans,

& workers who belonged to unions.Together these groups formed a

coalition that supported FDR.

New Deal Coalition

Membership soared from 3 million to more than 10 million.

Labor Unions made gains in the 1930’s….

International Association of Machinists, 1930's

The American Federation of Labor (AFL) was made up of

mostly crafts unions, like plumbers or carpenters.

Divisions emerged b/w labor unions…

These unions broke away to form the Congress of Industrial

Organizations (CIO)

Other unions wanted to represent workers in a whole industry, like automobile industry.

Siegel, Arthur S., photographer

The Natl’ Labor Relations Board stepped in and forced the steel co. to

negotiate.This helped labor gain strength.

Some strikes led to violence….On Memorial Day, 1937, police killed 10 people during a steel strike in

Chicago.

Section 4

CULTURE IN THE 1930’s…

What did Americans do for fun during the

Depression?

Hollywood studios made a wide variety of movies & created many

new movie stars…..

About 2/3’s of Americans went to a movie once a week.

Lee, Russell, 1903- photographer.

Idle men attend the morning movies. There are three such movies in one block. Lange, Dorothea, photographer.

Boys looking at penny movies at South Louisiana State Fair. Donaldsonville, Lee, Russell, 1903- photographer

POPULAR MOVIES OF THE 1930’S….

Gone With the Wind

(1939)

The Wizard of Oz(1939)

Passengers aboard the “St. Louis”. These Jewish refugees from Nazi Germany were forced to return to Europe after both Cuba & the U.S. denied them refuge.(May or June, 1939)United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

SNOW WHITE & THE SEVEN DWARFS(1937)

Fred Astaire & Ginger Rogers were dancing partners who made many movies together

His movies included “It’s a Wonderful Life”, and “Mr. Smith Goes to

Washington”

Frank Capra made a popular type of movie where honest, kind-hearted people won

out over greedy people.

There were radios in nearly 90% of homes.

Families listened to their favorite radio shows together.

Radio showed the democratic spirit of the

times.

1933Philips 643A

Buck Rogers

Abbott & Costello

Batman Radio Program

Radio made people like Bob Hope, Jack Benny, & George Burns & Gracie Allen

stars long before they had success on television.

Bob Hope

Jack Benny

George & Gracie

His fictional radio show “The War of the Worlds” was so realistic

that it convinced many that Martians had landed in New

Jersey.

The most famous radio broadcast was by Orson

Welles….

  Welles performing in his 1938 radio adaptation of The War of the Worlds.

The Federal Arts Project was part of the WPA.

It paid artists to create posters, murals, & other works of art for public places.

The New Deal also helped artists…

Grant Wood’s “American Gothic” remains symbolic of

life during the Depression

John Steinbeck got help from the FWP.His novel, “The Grapes of Wrath” is one

of the most famous books about Oklahoma farmers during the Great

Depression/Dust Bowl era.

The Federal Writers’ Project (FWP) funded

writers…

Section 5

THE IMPACT OF THE NEW DEAL

He did & the economy slid back a bit. Still, FDR didn’t start another phase of

the N.D.Why?

B/c he didn’t want any more deficit spending.

FDR was also more & more worried about events in Europe, particularly the

rise of Hitler.

Congress urge FDR to cut back on New Deal programs by the

end of the 1930’s

It gave the federal government & particularly the president, a greater role in shaping the

economy.

The New Deal expanded the power of the federal

government.

FDR’s Cartoon Analysis

and the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) to regulate banking & investment activities.

The government also created agencies such

as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

(FDIC)…

The Tennessee Valley Authority(TVA)

Helped prevent floods & provided electricity.

The New Deal also helped the environment.

N.D. policies promoted soil conservation to prevent a repeat of the Dust Bowl.

Force of falling water becomes electricity

The New Deal also added to the National

Park System

COMING NEXT…..

Chapter 16

WORLD WAR LOOMS…

THE END