The Great Depression
Quimesha Cason-Jackson
Causes and Effects of The Great Depression
The Wall Street Crash Of 1929 also known as Black Tuesday, began in late October 1929. The 1929 Stock Market crash was a result of various economic imbalances and structural failings. there was a rapid growth in bank credit and loans. After the crash, there were high unemployment rate which led to severe poverty. Many homeless people started living in "Hoovervilles" which were made of scraps.
Hoover`s Policies
In 1932, Hoover gave $300 million to the states to help the unemployed (Emergency Relief and Reconstruction Act) but it had little impact as states run by the Republicans believed in "rugged individualism" more than Hoover did. Many saw Hoover’s attempts as being "too little too late".In the1932 election, Hoover was heavily defeated by the Democrat candidate. This man had promised the American public a "New Deal". His name was Franklin D. Roosevelt. Thirteen years of Republican rule had come to an end.
Franklin D. Roosevelt`s New Deal
The New Deal was a series of domestic programs enacted in the United States between 1933 and 1938. The programs were in response to the Great Depression, and focused on what historians call the "3 Rs": Relief, Recovery, and Reform. In addition to the Agricultural Adjustment Act, the Tennessee Valley Authority Act, and the National Industrial Recovery Act, Roosevelt had won passage of 12 other major laws, including the Glass-Steagall Banking Bill and the Home Owners’ Loan Act, in his first 100 days in office.
The Second New Deal
In the spring of 1935, Roosevelt launched the Second New Deal. In April, he created the Works Progress Administration (WPA) to provide jobs for unemployed people. He signed the Social Security Act of 1935, which guaranteed pensions to millions of Americans, set up a system of unemployment insurance and stipulated that the federal government would help care for dependent children and the disabled. He was re-elected in the Election of 1936