Chapter 23 – Section 3 Life in the Great Depression

Women during the Great Depression The Great Depression had a significant impact on women. During the Great Depression the job market became flooded with unemployed men. Women who were secretaries and salesclerks often kept their jobs, but women who were teachers or factory workers lost theirs. However the hard times of the depression require many women to find work in order to support their families. More women were working towards the end of the Great Depression than the beginning.

Minority Groups and the Depression The Great Depression was particularly hard on minorities. African Americans suffered more unemployment, homelessness, illness, and hunger than did whites. Mexicans and Mexican Americans were forced out of their jobs and sometimes deported. Native Americans were among the poorest when the Depression began.

The Dust Bowl The Dust Bowl was located in the Southwestern Plains states. Being hardest hit in the pan handle of Oklahoma. The dust bowl was a combination of drought and poor farming techniques. These miseries were coupled with an agricultural recession that began during the late 1920s

Black Blizzards

The dust storms began in 1930 and lasted 5 years, turning farmland into wasteland. Many families were forced to go to California to find work. A large portion of these families migrated from Oklahoma and became known as Okies.

Arts and the Media During this period movies helped people forget their problems, while radio was a vital part of everyday life. Gangster Movies King Kong Mickey the Mouse Many Americans listened to FDR on their personal radios.

Important Figures - Eleanor Roosevelt Eleanor Roosevelt was FDR’s wife and the first lady. She was considered the “eyes and the ears” of the President due to his polio. Eleanor transformed the role of the First Lady by being an active participant in national matters. She is most notable for work with Women and African Americans.

Mary McLeod Bethune – An African American educator who was a member of FDR’s Black Cabinet. She became the top ranking African American in government. John Collier – Commissioner of Indian Affairs. He promoted the “Indian New Deal” which provided for improvements in Native American standards of living.

John Steinbeck John Steinbeck was the famous writer of The Grapes of Wrath, the Story of a Oklahoma migrant family making its way to California.

Dorothea Lange A photographer who worked for the Farm Security Administration. She is most famous for her photograph of a mother and her children. This photo is considered one of the greatest symbols of the depression era.

Thomas Hart Benton – He was an artist that was employed by the WPA to create murals for government buildings. His murals captured the lives of ordinary people. Shirley Temple – She was popular child actress. She symbolized great optimism during a time of low spirits.