II. Causes (The causes of the great depression were Over speculation, Unstable economy, and Overproduction)
A. Over speculation- People bought stocks thinking that they would go up and they would make a fortune.
B. Government Policy- Hoover did not really have a government policy. He was very stagnant and did not do very much for the government.
C. Unstable Economy- They economy was extremely unstable from the stock market crashing and people investing into it and not getting their money back.
1. Uneven prosperity- Money was not being spent and gained which caused a lot of uneven wealth. The rich stayed rich and the poor stayed poor.
2. Overproduction- Too much food was grown, and there were to many goods made. Factories could not make their money back because they could not sell all of the goods they made.
3. Worker issues / farm issues- Farmers were still producing a lot of food after WWI and their was too much food because they were not feeding soldiers.
III. Effects (The effects of the great depression were Poverty, Collapsed society and Ruined economy)
A. Poverty- People became extremely poor and some could not afford food or a place to live. Some places handed out food because so many people could not afford it. People stayed in shantytowns where they lived in homemade shacks.
B. Society- Society partially collapsed. People were "Hobo-ing" and doing what they could to survive. The standard for life was greatly reduced. There were shantytowns where people lived in shacks that they made.
C. World- America was not a good investment. They had to raise tariffs which effected everyone. Other countries were having economy problems as well.
IV. Solutions
A. Hoover- United States 31st president. Helped put together the idea of the hoover dam which employed many people. Overall did not do very much to help.
1. Volunteerism- People would use their time to volunteer at bread lines to help hand out food to the poor.
2. Public Works- Tried to give out government-financed jobs to people so that they had something to do to make some money. Was designed to replace some jobs that were lost in the private sector.
3. Hawley Smoot- Raised tariffs on over 20,000 imported goods. Caused other countries to raise tariffs on American goods and made goods more expensive.
4. RFC- Reconstruction Finance Corporation. Made loans to railroads, banks and agricultural institutions.
B. Roosevelt- Popular governor of New York, was elected president in 1932. Delivered acceptance speeches talking about his plans to end the depression.
1. New Deal- Roosevelt's policies for ending the depression. Pushed lots of acts to try and help end the depression.
a. Alphabet Soup- All of the new deal programs created by Roosevelt.
Example- AAA, Agricultural Adjustment Administration- The prices for farm goods were too low because farmers grew too much food. Government would pay farmers not to raise certain livestock or grow certain food in hope that the price would go up.
Example- CCC, Civilian Conservation Corporation- Offered unemployed young men the opportunity to work planting trees, fighting forest fires and building resivoirs.
Example- FDIC, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation- Provided government insurance for bank deposits up to a certain amount.
Example- CWA, Civil Works Administration- Hired workers directly and put them on the governments payroll. Employed over 4 million people that helped build or improve 1,000 airports, 500,000 miles of roads and over 40,000 schools.
b. Criticism?- The right side believed he was doing to much and the left side believed he was not doing enough.
2. 2nd new deal- Townsend Plan, Social Security Act, National Labor Relations Act, Committee for Industrial Organization and Works Progress Administration.
a. Social Security Act- Goal was to provide some security for the elderly and unemployed workers.
b. CIO, Committee for Industrial Organization- Set out to organize industrial unions. Began focusing on the automobile and steel industries.
c. WPA, Works Progress Administration- Employed 8.5 million workers that helped build around 650,000 miles of highways, 8,000 parks and 125,000 public buildings.
V. Criticicism
B. Political Criticism- Came from both the left and the right.
A. Conservatives- Still believed it was taking away too much power from big business.
B. Liberals (ex: criticised the new deal also. They....)
Ex- Critics of the new deal included the left and the right. Huey Long and Father Coughlin played a big part in this.
Ex- They both argued that the New Deal did not do enough to help the people.
VI. Effectiveness
A. Changes in US- Made a huge impact on how America handles the economy now. Basically taught America a lesson. The WPA and CWA made a lot of public buildings, parks and highways that we would not have if it was not for them.
B. Unions- Brought many new job opportunities that helped the unemployed.
C. Culture- Changed the way we look at America's debt and the way we handle our money. It also brought families closer together and eventually created a greater sense of national pride
VII. Conclusion - The Great Depression was a grim time in American history. Financial and agricultural insults deeply injured America and its people. The brave men, women, and children who endured those dark years showed amazing bravery, resiliences, and resourcefulness. Just as the national character changed from carefree thinking of the Roaring Twenties, the Government underwent massive policy changes. Programs to mend the nation- its finances, resources, and people-were put in place. As the despair of the Great Depression finally wained, the American people, once again, faced an exceptional challenge, WWII.
