The Great Depression was a decade of poverty and unemployment beginning in 1929, and there were several reasons for its occurrence. In 1928, there was a decline in consumer demand.  A decline in the demand for housing led to a decline in sales of building materials and the unemployment of construction workers.  Manufacturers also reduced production rates because people were holding off on buying appliances and automobiles- big purchases they thought could wait.  Agriculture prices also plummeted because farmers produced lots of crops even though the demand for them wasn’t high, thus taking the price of their products.

Furthermore, in the “Roaring 20s” people invested heavily in the stock market and bought stocks “on margin,” which means they bought the stock on credit and took loans out to pay for the stocks.  Their hope was that when they sold the stocks they could pay the loans and the interest on those loans while still making a profit.  Economic speculation led to a “bubble”—speculators kept gobbling up stocks expecting the prices to continue going up, but the risk was that they could lose a lot of money in a downturn of the stock market… which is what came next.  By September 1929 there was panic selling on the New York Stock Exchange and by October 24, 1929 (Black Thursday) the value of stocks dropped by 40%.  The marked officially crashed on 10/29/29.

Further complicating matters, farmers defaulted on loans, and when they couldn’t repay their loans, banks failed.  Because there was no FDIC, people ran to the bank to withdraw their funds, but without the funds of depositors, the banks couldn’t operate and had to close.  Not everyone was able to get their money out of failed banks because a bank doesn’t just keep deposited money- they loan it out to make money themselves and count on everyone not coming to get their money all at once.  This is called a “bank run.”

International issues also helped cause the Great Depression.  European nations owed the United States a lot of money after World War I that they couldn’t repay, which caused issues for larger banks.  Furthermore, a tariff that the U.S. placed on goods imported from Europe backfired; European nations retaliated by placing a tariff on goods that the U.S. exported to Europe, and our manufacturers lost the European market.

In 1932, unemployment was at 24%, stock prices were down 80%, and 85,000 businesses declared bankruptcy.  By 1933, just one year later, unemployment was up to 25%, 11 million people were looking for jobs, and families who were unable to pay rent were evicted.

The Human Toll

Bankruptcies, business closures, fired workers, and bank failures had both economic and psychological effects.  The attitude in the 1920s was that success was earned and failure was deserved.  This caused self-blame and self-doubt amongst men who were also feeling humiliated at the prospect of asking for help because they were unable to feed their families (they considered themselves to be the breadwinners).  Furthermore, children sometimes went to work when their parents couldn’t work or couldn’t find work.

Families who were evicted from their homes lived in “Hoovervilles,” which were squalid settlements, typically in cities, that were named after Herbert Hoover, who didn’t do anything to alleviate the suffering of the people.  Hoover opposed direct government relief because he believed in “self-sufficiency.”  To make matters worse, he hosted lavish parties when breadlines were dispensing thousands a meal a day (like 85,000) by 1932.  He thought the Depression would end in 60 days.  How did that turn out?  He was defeated by FDR in a landslide in the election of 1932.  Other things nicknamed after him were the “Hoover blanket” (a newspaper) and the “Hoover flag” (empty pockets turned inside out).

Some of the largest Hoovervilles had a mayor and a church (like in St. Louis) and Central Park’s Great Lawn was turned into a Hooverville, as well.  Homeless construction workers built stone “houses,” but most lived in shelters made of cardboard, wood from crates and fences, or whatever materials were around.  There was no running water or bathrooms in Hoovervilles, therefore making the conditions unsanitary and illness spread like wildfire.

Soup kitchens were invented to alleviate the plight of the poor, and the meal from the soup kitchen was the only daily meal for some people.  FDR also had programs for the homeless as part of his “New Deal” economic recovery, one of which was called the Federal Transient Service.

The Dust Bowl & The “Dirty Thirties”

Strong dust storms blew through the Texas panhandle, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Colorado, and Kansas.  The dust was so bad that it lowered visibility to almost zero and many died of dust pneumonia coupled with malnutrition because farmers were unable to grow crops and couldn’t feed their families.  Severe drought and extensive farming without crop rotation and the deep plowing of grass with deep roots that could retain moisture and stop wind erosion caused the dust storms.  Farmers were forced to leave and find work elsewhere.  Over 200,000 farmers moved west to California.  Families also traveled in search of work, food, and shelter.

Migration

The largest migration in US history in a short period took place during the Depression.  2.5 million people left the plains states by 1940, but economic conditions weren’t much better where they settled. Migrant labor means that people moved to harvest crops.  Mostly poor farmworkers who had to leave their farms took on migrant work.  Migrant workers had NO legal protection and were exploited by unfair labor practices.  Most migrants were from Oklahoma and were coined as “Okies”- which was considered derogatory.  Okies grew to also include the Cherokee people who also took on work as migrants.

Discrimination

The depression was particularly bad for Black Americans.  The conditions exacerbated racism and discrimination and white people were open and vocal about it.  Jobs were taken from Black people and given to white people,  In 1930, the “Black Shirts” in the south recruited 40,000 people to its racist agenda, which stated no Black person would get a job before a white person.  Black unemployment was 50% by 1932 and lynchings rose from 8 in 1932 to 28 in 1933.

In the Southwest, white people claimed that Hispanic workers were stealing jobs from white people.  The US Department of Labor deported 82,000 Mexican people between 1929 and 1935 and half a million were tricked or threatened to go back to Mexico voluntarily.  Many of those deported came legally but lacked documentation to prove their status (immigration law was VERY different back then!)  Government officials also deported the children of Mexican immigrants who were born in the US.

Discrimination against women was also rampant.  Men believed that women were stealing jobs.

Food Scarcity

People did not have the money to buy food, which also affected grocery stores who couldn’t stay fully stocked because they were losing business.  Because the grocery stores were not fully stocked, there wasn’t enough food for everyone to eat.  People dealt with this in various ways:

• They rationed food.
• They had potlucks to share food and have more variety
• They grew their own gardens and raised livestock.
• They canned food to reduce food waste
• They hunted for their meat.
• They waited in lines at soup kitchens.

The government also stepped in to help.  The food stamp program was started for those who qualified and the USDA’s Bureau of Home Economics (which was mostly female) helped communities to be more efficient about preparing nutritious meals.  They also invented an “Aunt Sammy” (a relative of Uncle Sam) to read recipies on the radio for food that was distributed by the government.

The Great Depression was solved ultimately, though, because the nation realized it wasn’t just about programs- the solution was about people.  The spirit of unity and empathy animated solutions.  People favored experimenting above partisanship and they recognized the needs of “ordinary people” in order to cultivate that unity to battle economic devastation.

Frozen Fruit Salad

Ingredients: 8oz Cool Whip, 1 can cherry pie filling, 1 can chunk pineapple (drained), ¼ cup lemon juice, 1 can of sweetened condensed milk

Put all ingredients into a bowl and stir.  Pour the mixture into a greased casserole dish or into muffin cups.  Freeze and serve.