Could you imagine the United States with people dying of starvation, no job opportunities with millions unemployed, houses being sold, and no way to receive money from the banks? That’s how the United States was during the Great Depression. The Great Depression started in 1929 when the U.S. stock market crashed. Chaos broke out and everyone was freaking out as to why the banks were closed. People were quickly depositing money out of the banks, and items, like cars and homes, were being sold for the desperation of cash. In 1931 over eight million people were unemployed, and the U.S.’s economy was slowly dying. Then, in 1932 Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected president. His main goal was to help the nation, therefore, from 1933-1935, the New Deal
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In one of Roosevelt's’ Fireside Chats, he talks on the radio about the economy saying that, “First, we are giving opportunity of employment to one-quarter of a million of the unemployed…” (Roosevelt). However, as he signs off the New Deal, the percentage increases and decreases over the years of the Great Depression. During the years of the First New Deal, the percentage of unemployment were even higher than when the Great Depression began. Gene Smiley writes in the Recent Unemployment Rate Estimates for the 1920’s and 1930’s that, “In the year on 1929, the unemployment percentage rate is 3.2. However, during the years of 1933-1935, the percentages are higher, at 20.6, 16.0, and 14.2” (Smiley). This shows that the unemployment level has actually been increasing over the years of the New Deal. Yet what’s worse is that they are estimates of percentages. The actual percent of people unemployed could be higher than the estimates recorded. One of the New Deal programs was the WPA, which was supposed to help the unemployed by giving jobs and decreasing unemployment. However, it does not seem as though it was a success since over eight million U.S.citizens did not have jobs, and to have the unemployment level by 1941 at 6% of 8 million helpless, jobless people is a huge amount (Smiley). Thus showing that although the New Deal and the WPA tried to help for relief of jobs and money for necessities,
In one of Roosevelt's’ Fireside Chats, he talks on the radio about the economy saying that, “First, we are giving opportunity of employment to one-quarter of a million of the unemployed…” (Roosevelt). However, as he signs off the New Deal, the percentage increases and decreases over the years of the Great Depression. During the years of the First New Deal, the percentage of unemployment were even higher than when the Great Depression began. Gene Smiley writes in the Recent Unemployment Rate Estimates for the 1920’s and 1930’s that, “In the year on 1929, the unemployment percentage rate is 3.2. However, during the years of 1933-1935, the percentages are higher, at 20.6, 16.0, and 14.2” (Smiley). This shows that the unemployment level has actually been increasing over the years of the New Deal. Yet what’s worse is that they are estimates of percentages. The actual percent of people unemployed could be higher than the estimates recorded. One of the New Deal programs was the WPA, which was supposed to help the unemployed by giving jobs and decreasing unemployment. However, it does not seem as though it was a success since over eight million U.S.citizens did not have jobs, and to have the unemployment level by 1941 at 6% of 8 million helpless, jobless people is a huge amount (Smiley). Thus showing that although the New Deal and the WPA tried to help for relief of jobs and money for necessities,