Social Inequality In The 1930's

The Great Depression was far-reaching, and impartial. It affected people of all race, gender, status, and nationality. Men and women of almost all social classes felt the hard effects of unemployment and poverty. The Great Depression had devastating economic and political effects on the country during the 1930’s; however, the effects ran much deeper. Social inequality was boundless during this time period: the nation’s wealth was unbalanced, racial disparity was more prominent than ever, and gender still determined who was considered a first-rate citizen (Kennedy 70-73). Under the guidance of President Herbert Hoover, the nation saw the social gap expand to new lengths, suggesting that the President was “the greatest innocent bystander in

Through the firsthand accounts told by Stud Terkel in Hard Times, the transformation of social roles-race, gender, and class- during the Great Depression can be viewed in two parts: the strengthening before President Roosevelt and the changes that took place after his administration came to power.

The time period leading up to the Great Depression was marked by economic boom and a renewed sense of nationalism after the defeat of the central powers in World War I (INSERT SOURCE). The United States was prospering politically and economically; however, the social gap that existed in the country was continuously being torn farther apart by legislation and economic circumstances. During the late 1920’s and early 1930’s, the existing social roles were being strengthened substantially, particularly regarding the roles of race, gender, and class. These three social groups were almost always in conflict, typically revolving around racial segregation, inequality among men and women, and the wealth gap between the rich and the poor. Under the Hoover administration, racial segregation was allowed to remain untouched by government interference. African Americans were alienated from society and further treated as second class citizens

It is clear that the ramifications of the Great Depression before the enactment of the New Deal went far beyond just economic consequences. To illustrate this racial divide that existed in parts of America, the accounts of Jerome Zerbe can be looked at. In the interview with Zerbe, he goes on to describe the “Negros” by saying: “Let’s not forget they’re only one tenth of the country, and what they’re putting on, this act- someday they’re going to be stepped on like vermin. There’s too much. I’m starting a thing: equal rights for whites” (Terkel 192). The statement that Zerbe issues in Hard Times epitomizes what a good majority of the country felt: blacks and whites were unequal, so unequal in some areas that they were described as “vermin”. Racial inequality had been present for hundreds of years, yet in the hard times of the early 1930’s, before the presidency of Roosevelt, the gap between whites and blacks was allowed to stretch to new distances by the inaction of the government and specifically the Hoover Administration. However, the racial divide that was present in America was not the only social issue present. In fact, during the early 1930’s, men across the country found themselves unemployed. When a