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Franklin D. Roosevelt's Devastating Effects Of The Great Depression

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When the stock market crashed in 1929, millions of Americans lost their jobs and were dumped into deep poverty. In 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected president by the biggest landslide in history as he was seen as a "new hope" after millions blamed the previous president, Hoover, for the economic downturn. In Roosevelt 's first one hundred days in office, he initiated The New Deal in order to relive, recover and reform the nation. Despite facing criticism from businesses, division among political parties and creating a deficit for the nation the workings of the New Deal were exponentially beneficial short-term and long-term. The constructive effects included providing jobs with better conditions for numerous people, the addition of …show more content…

Roosevelt took initiative and went to work to bring back prosperity to the people. The Works Progress/Projects Administration (WPA), the best-known agency created by the New Deal, provided jobs for over 8.5 million workers with pay varying from $19 to $94 per month. They were put to work by building highways, roads, public buildings, bridges, irrigation systems, parks, sewage system plants and more throughout the nation. As one of the most popular agencies, the WPA 's contributions helped strengthen the nation and stimulate the economy by employing millions which would not only go on to enrichen the people 's lives short-term but long-term, as well. As seen in a graph of "Unemployment of Nonfarm Workers By Percentage and Number" the amount of unemployed during the Great Depression reached its peak at 12,830,000 million. After the New Deal was implemented the rate of unemployment in nonfarm workers steadily declined until it reached one of its all-time lows in 1945 at 1,040,000 million. As more people gained jobs, the economy improved, wellbeing improved, and in the long run less expensive for the government. Roosevelt 's goal to recover the nation led to "an enormous outpouring of federal money for human relief" (William Lloyd Garrison Jr., "The Hand of Improvidence," The Nation, November 14, 1934) which did create a deficit in …show more content…

The act was created after the public burst out about the lack of insurance for older aged individuals. It was an incredibly historical act and was seen as incredible patriotic. In a historical flyer dated back to 1935 found in the Print and Photograph Division fo the Library of Congress, the words, "A monthly check to you - for the rest of your life...beginning when you are 65" are displayed prominently. On the flyer is a large abundance of information regarding Social Security including what it is, where to get it and who can get it. On the flyer is a man giving out "your monthly Social Security check" to the viewer. The flyer was meant to inform the public as well as make them feel safer about their economic well-being. Social Security was initially created as an act to aid the unemployed but today it has become an incredible crucial thing to those who are retired and disabled and serves as their safety net and is probably the most beneficial component of the New Deal long-term.

As said in an article of The Nation, "The New Deal, being both a philosophy and a mode of action, began to find expression in diverse forms" (William Lloyd Garrison Jr., "The Hand of Improvidence," The Nation, November 14, 1934). When Roosevelt enacted the New Deal he did so to enrichen and benefit the nation as a whole. The New Deal consisted of both short-term and long-term

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