1. SSUSH18 The student will describe Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal as a response to the depression and compare the ways governmental programs aided those in need

2. In the midst of the Great Depression, on March 4, 1933, President Franklin Roosevelt told America, “This great Nation will endure as it has endured, will revive and will prosper. So first, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing to fear is fear itself…” With a fourth of the nation unemployed, Roosevelt vowed to “put people to work.” In a nation that had seen one bank failure after another, Roosevelt promised “strict supervision of all banking and credits and investments…an end to speculation with other people’s money, and…provision for an adequate but sound currency.”

3.  A comprehensive series of social & economic programs enacted during the Great Depression by the FDR Administration that have become part of our everyday lives today.

4.  Within 2 days of inauguration FDR closed all banks.  Once reopened, he told Americans “that it is safer to keep your money in a reopened bank than under your mattress.”  Money then began flowing back into the banks

5.  FDR started as soon as he got into office with new laws regulating the banking industry, gave relief to the poor, and managed farms.  Foremost was getting people back to work

7.  Created in 1933 to control floods & bring electricity to rural America in seven southern states.  The TVA generated over 40,000 jobs building dams, power plants, roads and miles of wiring What do workers do with the money they earn? How could the TVA help the economy?

8.  Established in 1933 – ended in 1942  Within 9 years, flood control, reforestation, and other CCC projects employed at least 2.5 million people, primarily young men (ages 18-25).  The men lived in work camps under a strict regime – the majority were racially segregated  Accomplishments: planted over 3 billion trees, developed 800 state parks, and built more than 46,000 bridges

9.  FDR’s effort to regulate business practices by encouraging businesses to establish a minimum wage and abolish child labor

10.  Began in 1933 and provided relief to farmers in the form of crop subsidies.  A subsidy is money paid by the government for a specific purpose.  The purpose of the AAA was to keep farmers from overplanting to prevent another Dust Bowl and to keep produce prices high.

11.  Began in 1935 and built buildings and roads and created employment for workers and artists.  One job in particular were the slave narratives, a series of stories as told by elderly African Americans who recalled their days of enslavement prior to 1865

12. National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) or Wagner Act  Passed in 1935, the law protected the right of laborers to form unions.  guaranteed workers the right to unionize  protected collective bargaining (the ability to bargain as a group for workers’ rights)  allowed for binding arbitration  Also established the National Labor Relations Board to settle disputes between the labor unions and management.  The Wagner Act paved the way for the formation of the United Steel Workers of America and the United Auto Workers

13.  After two years of New Deal programs, the American economy showed little sign of recovery  To try and speed up the recovery process, Roosevelt launched his second New Deal

14.  Created in 1933 as retirement insurance for the elderly.  The idea of redistributing tax dollars to the elderly was quite controversial at the time.  3 parts:  Old-age insurance for retirees 65 or older and their spouses  Unemployment insurance compensation system  Aid to families with dependent children and the disabled

15.  First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt  Viewed as a woman of great compassion  Thousands of individuals wrote to Mrs. Roosevelt during the years of the Great Depression asking for money to pay the rent, help with the mortgage, buy a sweater, or buy “shoe skates” in 1930. Children promised to pay her back once they got a job  She worked tirelessly to help the less fortunate, touring the country to assess the needs of the people  Eleanor Roosevelt spoke to many women and African American groups and relayed their plight to the President  Though little progress in race relations was made, Eleanor helped promote minority and women’s rights  She stood out at the time as a symbol of social progress and women’s activism  She was the eyes and ears for FDR.

16.  Roosevelt’s New Deal Programs had opponents including Huey Long, Roosevelt’s political rival from Louisiana, put forth his “share the wealth” plan  Called for taxing the rich and using those dollars to give everyone a home and annual income of $2,500  believed that the government should take money from the rich and give it to the poor  Wanted to run for President  Was assassinated 1935

17.  1935, the U.S. Supreme Court held the National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA) to be unconstitutional  1936, Supreme Court declared provisions of the AAA unconstitutional  At the same time, cases were pending against the Social Security Act and the TVA.

18.  The Supreme Court had struck down several of Roosevelt’s programs declaring them unconstitutional  Roosevelt responded by attempting to increase the number of Supreme Court justices from 9 to 15, with the intent of appointing justices supportive of the New Deal.

19.  After much protest by Congress and many Americans, the bill suggested the extra justices was killed in the Senate  Idea of “packing the court” was dropped after the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the Social Security Act  Roosevelt over estimated his power

20.  As not only the U.S., but the world struggled to emerge from the economic depression, military dictators in several countries began to gain power (Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia).  Worried that the U.S. would be drawn into another European war, Congress passed the Neutrality Act which made it illegal for Americans to sell weapons to any country at war and that goods purchased from the U.S. had to be paid in cash and transported on non U.S. ships Why would Congress insist on goods being transported on non U.S. ships?