Facts Chapter 15

More Facts 1929 (last year before the GD): Unemployment = 3.2% 1932 (FDR elected president): Unemployment = 25% You know the stock market crashed. How bad was it though? It hit both employers and employees  10 million people lost their jobs  People with jobs had severe wage losses Avg. worker made $1475 per year in 1929 Avg. worker made $1199 per year in 1932  In 1929, if you added up how much money all of the companies in the stock market were worth, it equaled $89.7 billion  In 1932, if you added up how much money all of the companies in the stock market were worth, it equaled $15.6 billion  Think about how much money that is…

Many More Facts Why did FDR want to help farmers?  1920: wheat sold for $3 per bushel  1932: wheat sold for $.30 per bushel  Droughts in 12 states across middle America led to “Dust Bowls”, forcing families to abandon their farms and move west If there’s no water, there’s no crops If there’s no crops, there’s dust Dust + wind = “Dust Bowls” & awful farming conditions Remember FDR’s promise of the 3 R’s of the New Deal  RELIEF! Immediate and direct ($ so people can buy food, clothing, and loans for homes and farms)  RECOVERY! Putting the economy back on its feet, and that is done by creating jobs  REFORM! Fix the stuff that’s broken that caused the Depression in the first place

Many, Many More Facts The New Deal may have been helpful for some, but it brought limited gains for minorities and women… …and this was despite Frances Perkins becoming the first female cabinet member as Secretary of Labor (granted, she didn’t have enough pull to enact sweeping pro-women legislation, but it’s worth noting)  She was able to help create the Social Security system  Also advised labor legislation Eleanor Roosevelt encouraged FDR to appoint two female diplomats and the first female judge  FDR went along with it because he felt it would help gain female voters for the Election of ’36  And it’s not like America was achieving gender equality: in a 1936 Gallup Poll, 82% of Americans said a wife shouldn’t work if her husband had a job In 1930, 11.7% of married women had a job In 1940, 15.6% of married women had a job

Many, Many, Many More Facts Eleanor also had a key role in opening the door for minorities Educator Mary McLeod Bethune was appointed to head the Division of Negro Affairs of the National Youth Administration (NYA) Bethune guaranteed African American administrators and provided job training opportunities for minorities She also organized a “Black Cabinet” of influential African Americans to advise FDR on key issues  Bethune was able to do this because of the trust she had gained from Roosevelt Still, Roosevelt failed to support civil rights  He was afraid of upsetting white southern democrats before his re-election campaign  Also, New Deal programs paid less to blacks and favored whites

Many, Many, Many, Many More Facts Did the New Deal Work? Depends: Things stopped getting worse but the Depression didn’t end Government pressured Congress to cut back on New Deal programs Unemployment in 1932: 10 million Unemployment in 1937: 7.7 million Unemployment in 1938: 10.4 million Unemployment in 1939: New Deal is over and Roosevelt is worried about Hitler as much as anything else

Many, Many, Many, Many, Many More Facts What Lasted from the New Deal? Social Security Act  Old age insurance for retirees 65+ and their spouses  Unemployment compensation system  Aid to families with dependent children and the disabled FDIC  Protects people’s money if a bank fails Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)  Monitors the stock market and enforces laws regulating the sale of stocks and bonds National Labor Relations Board  Prevents unfair labor practices and mediates disputes between workers and management