The New Deal Program: a Turning Point in American History

While some would say the New Deal was not radical but more progressive, the New Deal was radical in a sense that for the first time the US government started to play a role in people's lives. The Glass-Steagall Act regulated banks, put capital requirements on banks, and made the FDIC. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was created which employed over 3 million men (about the population of Arkansas). The government also gave aid to the unemployed by establishing the Federal Emergency Relief Administration in 1933. So, in a sense the New Deal was radical in changing the ways of the American People and helping them restore faith in the United States government politically and economically.

The stock market crashed on October 24, 1929, sending the United States into an economic depression. People were out of work, not able to feed their families or provide in any way. One in four Americans who wanted a job could not find one and, of those who could, more than half had to settle for part-time work. The United States economy came to a screeching halt. It was a terrible time for families to live because you could not provide for your kids or even put food on the table. People were getting fired from their jobs that at one point were booming, and they could do nothing about it but suffer and take it.

When 1932 came around it was time for the presidential election, the incumbent president, Republican Herbert Hoover was going against the Democratic nominee New York Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt. FDR began his campaign by pledging a New Deal for the American people. He ended up winning the election by a landslide, radical changes started to happen within the United States government and new experimental ideas started to happen. FDR was ready to dig into the complex issues that were happening to the American people in the Great Depression and met with numerous people to discuss what the best way to go was and what would produce the best possible outcome. FDR was adamant on helping the American people restore faith in the government politically and financially.

So, what was the New Deal? It was a complex set of policy experiments that were used to restore “confidence” in the political and economic systems. It gave the federal government power to restore economic stability by promoting purchasing power. Gave ordinary citizens new ways to take part in politics and the economy. This was not universal though; women and African Americans were not allowed to take part in this movement. Most of these policy experiments have never been tried before and it was all done based on principals and ideals on how things should be done. It was just jumping in with two feet to see where it goes and hopefully it will not fail.

It all started on the first 100 days (about 3 and a half months) of President Roosevelts term. A flurry of legislation started to happen; 15 major laws were passed during this time to counter the effects of the Great Depression. Fixing the banks was a major priority for Roosevelt, he made a National Bank holiday, closing all the banks on March 3, 1933. He worked with congress to create and pass the Emergency Banking Act on March 9, 1933, which gave the government power to help failing banks. On June 16, 1933, the Glass-Steagall Act was passed. It regulated bank investments, put capital requirements on banks, and established the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) which insures money. These were all good things that FDR proposed and passed, it allowed for the banks to have securities as well as the American people. FDR was quick when he was elected into office and was ready to make a change for the American people for the better. He did have the majority of the American people behind him already.

You can start to see the radical changes that are starting to happen within the United States government and in the population of the American People. Roosevelt tried to create more jobs; The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was created which employed over 3 million men. The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) was a program used to create jobs in hard hit areas of the country via a series of hydroelectric dams. The program was remarkably successful, FDR was trying to make a, “different type of citizen.” The Civil Works Administration (CWA) was also created, over 4.2 million people (about twice the population of New Mexico) are going to work for the CWA building tunnels, roads, and bridges. Roosevelt also wanted to grant relief to Americans, he established the Federal Emergency Relief Administration in 1933. This allowed for Americans to receive direct relief, 1 in 6 Americans were receiving cash aid from the government at this point. All of these programs were successful and helped people in a great way, allowing them to work and make money for their families. As well as bring in more faith to the government politically and economically.

In the document of a poster by Vera Bock, the poster says, “Work Pays America! Work Progress Administration” It has a farmer and a laborer in the picture shaking hands to show that people need to work together and encourages them to work for America to make it better again. This picture shows some radical changes that the WPA is wanting to happen in the United States, they want to start to interfere with people’s lives so they can get a job that pays well so they can support themselves and their families. This is indeed a dramatic turn in the history of the United States to pull themselves out of the Great Depression.

The Second New Deal included a five-billion-dollar appropriation that established the Works Progress Administration. The WPA employed millions of Americans on public work projects. The Public Works Administration (PWA) provided grants-in-aid for local governments to distribute capital for large infrastructure projects. The Americans that were employed by the WPA created more than half a million miles of roads. They built thousands of bridges, schools, and post offices. They also painted murals and recorded oral histories. This was the most radical part of the New Deal; Roosevelt was giving jobs to the unemployed with public works. Many of this was long lasting and the roads and bridges and schools are still in use to this day. This has signaled a dramatic turn in the United States history, people were working and building the infrastructure of the United States that is still active today. The New Deal was a good and long-lasting impact on the American people.

There are things that does not signal a dramatic change in the United States, women and black people were left out and in the dirt. In the document a statement was made by Charles H. Houston who was representing the NAACP. He says, “First, and very serious, Negro share croppers and cash tenants would be excluded. I take it that I do not need to argue to this committee the fact that of the Negro population and of the population of the country generally, your Negro share cropper and your Negro cash farm tenant are just about at the bottom of the economic scale.” This was not a dramatic turn in the history of the United States, black people were not even treated like citizens of the United States by the NAACP. They were not eligible to receive any kind of relief because they were already at the bottom of the pile. Even though they were at the bottom of the pile they were the ones who needed help the most and the NAACP was not willing to budge or help these people. The NAACP was treating these people less than human beings and this was a step back from a good change in the United States.

Most of the women failed receive the benefits on the New Deal. Many of the New Deal programs were focused on assumptions that the males were serving as breadwinners, and women as mothers, homemakers, and consumers. This made it hard for women to have economic autonomy. The New Deal was great but it failed to challenge the inequalities of life in the United States. This was a failed attempt of the New Deal and it did not help women or African Americans able to get back on their feet and support themselves it could have been done differently and succeeded without ease. FDR failed to target the people who needed to help the most. Most of the women and African Americans were left in the ground and expected to figure it out for themselves.

The question to ask was the New Deal radical, and did it signal a dramatic turn in the history of the United States? The New Deal was radical because the government was beginning to nudge into people’s lives with work, and benefits. It signaled a dramatic change in how the government was shaping into a government that was geared towards helping the citizens of the United States. Many of FDR programs have had a long-lasting impact on the United States to this day. Most of the roads built back in the New Deal are still used today. Many of the public schools that were built are also still in use, as well as bridges and post offices. There were some parts that were lacking in the New Deal and some of it did not challenge the inequalities people were having in life. A majority group of people were left out and suffered hardship because the government was not helping them. Overall, the New Deal had a lasting impact and shaped how the United States is today.