Group items tagged

When I first looked at this photo, the first thing that came to mind was the image of a hillbilly. As I searched the web for information about the photo I remembered visiting the tenement museum in the Lower Eastside, one of the things I remembered was Hard Times and the New Deal of the early mid 1930's. The New Deal came up when I typed in hillbilly in Hale County Alabama, which lead me to this site about Roosevelt and the New Deal. Since the onset of the Great Depression-initiated by the crash of the stock market in the fall of 1929-over $75 billion in equity capital had been lost on Wall Street, the gross national product had plunged from a high of $104 billion to a mere $74 billion, and U.S. exports had fallen by 62 percent. Over thirteen million people, nearly 25 percent of the workforce, were now unemployed. In some cities, the jobless rate was even higher. Caught in a web of despair, thousands of shabbily dressed men and women walked the streets in search of work, or a bit of food, doled out from one of the hundreds of soup kitchens set up by private charities to keep the wage-less from starvation. FDR's response to this unprecedented crisis was to initiate the "New Deal" - a series of economic measures designed to alleviate the worst effects of the depression, reinvigorate the economy, and restore the confidence of the American people in their banks and other key institutions. While the New Deal did much to lessen the worst affects of the Great Depression, its measures were not sweeping enough to restore the nation to full employment. Critics of FDR's policies, on both the right and the left, use this fact as a reason to condemn it. Conservatives argue, for example, that it went too far, and brought too much government intervention in the economy, while those on the left argue that it did not go far enough, and that in order to be truly effective, the Roosevelt Administration should have engaged in a far more comprehensive program of dire

This webpage presents a table outlining the many and varied programs brought forth by the New Deal. The table describes the program and its outcome. The New Deal changed the lives of many Americans through the implementing of a minimum wage, the creation of jobs, the banning of child labor and especially the Social Security Act.

This is an interesting (without being very lengthy) site which describes life during the Great Depression."Practically everyone had to deal with major losses and drastic changes. Children had to cope with the loss of a stable life and an education. Farmers had to learn to live with the loss of their farms that had supported their families. The middle class had to deal with the loss of money and the potential disappearance of their social class."

History.com's interpretation of the New deal. While it did little to end the great depression, it offered hope to society by offering projects and employment opportunities to society. The website includes a picture gallery of a struggling society in the 1930's and the projects that aimed to end it. The images are strong, including one that hits home; a photo of the Times Square Bread line. The North was the first to experience the effects of the great depression.

This article gives a good brief history of the Jim Crow laws passed around the united states after the civil war. I found it very interesting that right after the civil war, african americans had a great deal of freedoms in the south and only after the withdrawal of north's troops and a supreme court decision that blacks and whites could be "separate but equal" that the situation got inherently worse over the next twenty years. Not only segregation but voter limits as well as social mobility laws were passed which significantly affected civil rights based on white supremacy ideology.

The Great depression forced many men out of work and out of money. Because of harsh times, men either left their families or sent the women to work, where many times, women were left feeling empowered. However, many men were left feeling worthless due to the dramatic changes, leading to further lack of work and income or worse, a broken home. With FDR's "new deal", aimed at providing employment to the poor, families had hope. However, African Americans were only pushed further into poverty as white males were the first to be hired for long term positions.

The Historical Text Archive website publishes "articles, books, essays and documents on a broad range of historical subjects". This page deals with the rise and fall of the sharecropping system in America. Although the article is lengthy it has a particularly interesting section concerning the plight of sharecroppers during the Depression era .

This pbs.org site focuses on the pbs television series "American Experience". This particular page deals with the Great Depression and goes into detail about the stock market crash which triggered the Depression. It is interesting to read how the "imbalance between the rich and poor" was a primary factor in the stock market crash and how the poor were by far the most affected by it. The piece also talks about how the government intially underestimated the crisis and it took the election of Franklin Delano Roosevelt to eventually bring about an end to the Depression.

The website provides a glimpse into the class divides in the 1930's. The weathly that lost little in the stock market crash, flaunted their wealth in front of lesser fortunate wealthy and the poor, which the poor resented. The wealthy resented the New Deal programs which were funded by those still working - including themselves.

This article from the NY Times site talks about the impact that Betty Friedan's book "The Feminine Mystique" had on altering women's perceptions of their gender roles and their place in American society. While the article is a little lengthy the first page alone offers a great deal of history and statistics concerning the gender gap and its persistence in American culture.

This article takes you through the Great Depression and the affects it had on American workers. According to the article, 25% of all workers and 37% of all non-farm workers in the USA were unemployed by 1933. Roosevelt used the New Deal to put people back to work on public projects. But it wasn't until WWII that the US came out of the Great Depression and people could begin to rebuild and find new jobs.

This site also reflects the roles of women during the Depression. However it focuses on the work detail for which women were responsible . When their husbands lost their jobs, women were forced into the labor market. The New Deal was a program created to aid economic recovery and it helped improve women's working conditions. The depression caused more women to have to get jobs than any other time in history. the New Deal also helped women overcome some racial prejudices against non- white women workers.

The Constitutional Rights Foundation site seeks to educate people about the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights. This page deals with the institution of the welfare system in the U.S.and it's link to the Great Depression era.

The US Supreme Court to the case of Rosa Park's, actually never got a chance to hear Mrs. Park's case. Rosa Park's was arrested on charges of misdemeanor disorderly conduct, and appeared before judge John B Scoot. Her lawyer Fred Gray, immediately filled an appeal, but then realized that her case would not be upheld in the Alabama court system for years. Although Mrs. Park's case did not make it to the Supreme Court, her experience on the Montgomery Bus, largely aided the African American community to organize the bus boycott.  Four attorney's decided on a strategy in dealing with the bus segregation issues. Fred Gray, Thurgood Marshall, Robert Carter and Charles Langford, with a plan of action approached three other women (Aurelia Browder, Claudette Colvin, Susie McDonald and Mary Louise Smith). These women had also experienced abuse form the Montgomery bus system.  The women became plaintiffs in a federal civil action law against the city and Mayor W.A. Gayle. Affirming the District Court ruling without issuing a written opinion, the US Supreme Court denied the cities petition. Racial segregation on buses within state boundaries became outlawed, the city of Montgomery received an official order to desegregate buses in 1956. Although the four attorneys, and including the other four women may have provided legal change, this write up point out how Mrs. Park's determination, dignity and courage catalyzed the national Civil Rights Movement.  Heidi Beckles 

This website talks about Rosa Parks humble beginnings ans how there were other supporters behind her who were willing to risk their lives to defending the cause. Some of these supporters were 'white.' Clifford and Virginia Durr, encouraged Rosa Parks to go to school and sponsored the long stay. This was the basis for learning who to strategically protest without being or using violence. Then, the real meaning is that Rosa Parks was the front person for other people who believe in equality, and the freedom of other. Rosa Parks endured a great deal of problems for her action, some of them legal, Rosa Parks violated the 'white law of segregation", but it was well worth it. The world benefited.

A very insightful website providing details in the issues associated with sharecropping and tenancy farming in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Poor whites suffered ridicule from both wealthy whites and fellow southern blacks, labeled as "white trash" and categorized in terms of labels such as "hillbilly". The signing of the "New Deal" isolated the south. A description of how the world war II began to put an end to such poverty among blacks and whites in the south is offered.

On October 29, 1929 the stock market crashed. This day is also known as "Black Tuesday". This was the beginning of the Geat Depression Era in America. During the Great Depression, many Americans were unemployed. President Roosevelt introduced the "New Deal" which offered work relief for the American people. America's entry into War World 2 helped supply jobs for the American people. During this time of war, the demand for supplies for war was high. This provided a growth in the economy as more people began to work.

This website goes deep into the Great Depression, how it began and how it ended. Beginning with the stock market crash in 1929 and Black Tuesday and finally with FDR's New Deal America came out of the Great Depression. Many people lost their jobs and some their lives to constant poverty and hunger. It looks as though the woman in the photo was a victim.

This site commemorates the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots. It also deals with the beginnings of the LGBT movement and how Stonewall was a catalyst for that.