Monday- Causes and Vicious Cycle of Great Depression
-Hoovervilles
-Hopping trains, Dust Bowl, Okies (to California)
-Herbert Hoover- He tried, but philosophies of high tariffs and small government didn't work. Hoover passed Federal Farm Board, Norris-LaGuardia Act, one halt on German war payments to France, one year halt on war payments from GB and France to USA
-President's Organization for Unemployment Relief-1931, help US citizens who lost their jobs due to the Great Depression
-Its purpose was to coordinate local welfare agencies without spending any money
-Reconstruction Finance Corporations- gave loans to banks, state and local governments to create jobs
-Started under Hoover- Hoover Dam
-Bonus Expedionary Force-WW1 veterans marched to DC and asked for Congress to give the bonus early for food and jobs. Congress said no.
-Set up Hoovervilles outside of the city
-MacArthur, Eisenhower and Patton were all there. Hoover told MacArthur not to go farther beyond a bridge, but MacArthur did it anyways. Two were killed and hundreds were injured.
-The 1932 Elections- Herbert Hoover (R) vs Franklin D. Roosevelt (D)- Roosevelt promises a New Deal for Americans. Roosevelt wins by a long shot. Relief, Reform, Recovery
-FDR's Brain Trust- Harry Hopkins- Social Worker and the architect of much of the New Deal. Frances Perkins was the first female in the Cabinet, Secretary of Labor.
-Fireside Chats- live addresses to the people by way of radio.
-In the first 100 days we're going to get a lot done. Passed about 15-16 major pieces of legislation.
-National Labor Relations Act- (NLRA/NLRB/Wagner Act)- protects rights for works to form unions, have a say in wages, hours, terms of conditions, take part in strikes. Applies to all employers other than airlines, agriculture and the government. Passed in July, 1935. The NLRA is still in place, labor unions still exist. Workers were given rights, created peace in workplace, strikes became more peaceful. Equal bargaining power for employees, more democratic in the workplace. Not all employers would pay the higher wages. Strikes occurred more often.
-Federal Emergency Relief Act (FERA)- started in May 12, 1933, started by Harry Hopkins. Relief for people as soon as possible, supply jobs for employable people, give qualified people long term jobs, provide federal grants to relief systems, maintain a minimum standard of living. Emergency Federal Relief Program replaced Civil Works Administration. Assitance for unemployed like library, art, and theatre projects. National Park environmental work. "Assitance for Unemployed White Collar" workers. Planning, public health, welfare, recreation, education, arts, research. Unemployed teachers were employed and got nearly 44,000 teachers taught 1,724,000 people about new jobs. FERA transforms into WPA Works Progress Administration, employed 8 million people.
Tuesday- more presentations
National Youth Act- Sector of the Works Project Administration (June 1935)- people weren't going to college or going to school. Benefitted over 4.5 million young people, federally funded work projects, helped the war industry. Had war workshops. Ended the NYA in 1943, as it had done its job well enough.
Public Works Administration (PWA)- Frances Perkins suggested (June 16, 1933) part of New Deal reforms. Took money and put it aside for things to be built (infrastructure projects). Goal was to lower the unemployment rate. Spent "big bucks on big projects". Didn't return pre-depression level of industrial activity. Didn't significantly reduce unemployment rate. Overall, it didn't work out as well. Was cut in June 1941.
Works Progress Administration (WPA)- An idea that FDR had in late 1934 and was brought into 1935. Created work for millions of people by building roads, buildings, bdiges, and more. WPA itself employed 3.3 million people. It affected those in Great Depression by giving them a decent wage. Ended in 1943 to conserve funds for WWII, and many men would join the armed forces.
Federal Project Number One (Federal One)- It started in 1935 and it was created to provide job opportunities for unemployed actors, stagehands, muscians, writers, historians, clerical workers, and otehrs who were not suited for typical manual labor jobs. Provided benefits and was fairly successful, and wasn't believed that local communities would fund art related projects. It would be a nation-wide project with WPA sponsorship. Roosevelt encouraged photographers to expose the suffering in America. Example the Migrant Mother. It ended in 1939 and it is no longer around anymore. Federal One was under constant attack from peoples' views. The Federal One was concerned about conservatives in Congress that the project was infiltrated by communists.
Wednesday-
Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)- Started on April 5th, 1933 and ended in 1942. Only lasted nine years, and women were prohibited from joining the CCC at first. By the end of 1942, the CCC employed nearly 3 million men and 8500 women. All races were eligible to participate, but work units were segregated. All members receieved the same pay and benefits. Public work relief program that operated from 1933-1942 in the US was for unemployed, unmarried men. Gave young men employment on environmental projects. Considered one of the most successful of Roosevelt's New Deal programs, planted more than 3 billion trees. Cosntructed trails and shelters in more than 800 parks nationwide. CCC Camps, each worker receieved $30 payment per month in addition to room and board. Required to send 3/4 of money to home. Gained education while at the CCC Camps. It was successful.
Emergency Banking Relief Act (EBRA)- Banks went broke and people lost all of their money. March 9,1933 was when it was established. 'Bank Holiday', closed banks until the right procedures were set in place. Banks were inspected and were being allowed to open within 3 days. They could be from big to little banks. It was successful and it reopened the banks, and happened with inspections, and restored confidence. Some closed and never reopened. Many people put their money back into banks.
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)- Started in 1933, headquarters in Washington D.C., exxecutives of the time, Glass-Steagall were the makers. Independent Agency and backed by the credit of the United States government. Protects funds depositors place in banks and saving associations. The funds that you place into a bank will never be lost. It's the FDIC's job to protect money. Keeps track of everything. Helped anyone that put money into an American bank, as long as it's backed by the United States government. Since 1933, no depositor has lost a penny of FDIC insured funds. $250,000 insured today.
Thursday-
National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA)- Business recovery was a priority, it was established by Congress on June 16th, 1933. Meant to help with antion's economic recovery, unemployment, and to prevent another depression. The goal was to eliminate cutthroat competition. Codes of fair competition. Codes of Fair Competition-help with productivity, minimum wages, working hours, and unions. Title One was probably the least successful of all New Deal programs, it ended child labor in textile industry. It ended because the codes were too controversial. Title II was more successful. Killed in 1935 by the Supreme Court.
Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA)- Started on May 12,1933, one of first New Deal programs. Extends relief for farmers, less crops was getting more money. It protected farmers from price drops. The AAA started to give money. People weren't as happy out in the cities. The government protects farmers with different programs and subsidies. Excess animals, they started killing hogs and other animals to get more money from the less animals. People weren't in favor of the cutting of crops. It was successful for most farmers and the prices went up. It was declared unconstitutional in 1937, basic program was rewritten in 1938.
Social Security Act (SSA (Social Security))- Created on August 14, 1935 by Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Created to help the elderly. Industrial accident victims, unemployment insurance, mothers and children, the blind, and the physically handicapped were all helped. Two million dollars was first allotted. It was called one of the most successful New Deal programs and effective programs in the United States today. It is still around today but it is running out of funds.
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)- Created on May 18, 1933, by FDR. It provided jobs, electricity, and took care of problems in the valley in the Tennesse River Valley. It was successful because it provided jobs, reduced flooding, deforestation, and erosion. It taught better farming methods, built dams, and operated the already existing Wilson Dam, and improved living conditions. Additionally, it provided cheaper electricity. It also didn't do well because 3500 people lost homes when Norris Dam was built. The dam flooded 239 acres. It is still around today and is the nation's largest public power provider.
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)- Was created on June 25th, 1938, but took effect on October 24th of that year. It allowed for maximum allowed to work is 40 hours and the maximum wage was 40 cents an hour. Kids were not allowed to work, and overtime pay was allowed, full-time and part-time pay. Recordkeeping of how many hours they worked was created. It was successful and you can only work a total of 40 hours a week, 8 hours a day, and earn a pay for over four hours of overtime.
Friday-
Federal Securities Act (Securites Act of 1933)- Established because of the Stock Market Crash in 1929. Governed by Securities and Exchange Commission created in 1934. Took power away from the states and into the hands of the federal government. Created a uniform set of rules to protect investors against fraud. It was first federal legislation used to regulate the stock market. It had two main goals- to ensure more transparency in financial statements so investors can make informed decisions. And the second is to establish laws agaisnt misrepresentation and fraudulent activities in the stock market. It was successful because the market flourished and became a worldwide model. Amendments have been passed to the Securities Act, last one in 2012 by President Obama.
Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA)- Gave the US ability to oversee the safety of food, drugs, and cosmetics. People would sell misbranded foods and adulterated food. Most food was untouched, and hazardous customer items remained on the market legally. It was successful because it helped people that were sick and it put directions on a bottle to see how much people would need. It seized unsafe and misbranded foods, it prosecuted and jailed violators. It collected samples for examination.
Farm Security Act (FSA)- It was created in 1937 by the Department of Agriculture. It helped with rural rehabilitation, farm loans, and homstead programs. The loans they got could be used to purchase their stuff they would need. Also helped provide the families help with education and healthcare. FSA designed to take photographs of the farm suffering. Gave jobs to photographers that took those photos. Took people from the city and set up cooperative, subsistence farming communities.
Civil Works Administration (CWA)- It was created on November 9th, 1933 by an executive order. It started because there was too many people that didn't have a job. It was meant to rapidly create manual labor jobs for the millions of unemployed workers. It was meant to get people through the winter of 1933-34. 44,000 new roads, 2000 miles of levees, 1000 miles of water mains, 4000 new schools, and 1000 new airports were created by the administration. It was very successful because it had nearly 4 million formerly unemployed workers on its payroll. It was recreated into the WPA. It ended in July of 1934, most employment ended by march 31st. The job was only supposed to get people from 1933-34 and it did its job.
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