Write An Essay About The Effects Of Unemployment In The 1930's

445 Words2 Pages

It is utter chaos and turmoil. Everywhere you look you can see the looming shadow of devastation and hopelessness. The streets are full of people trying to get their money back from the banks; trying to get their money back before it is too late; before they are sucked into the dark fathomless pit of destruction.
Unemployment is increasing at an alarming rate, with a 20% unemployment rate by 1930 and almost 30% unemployment by 1932.
Workers are lining up to construct what is known as the ‘Susso Drive’, in order to receive sustenance payment. There is also intense competition for work as there has been a huge downfall in the amount of available jobs. It is utter madness.

However this doesn't even begin to describe the suffering and loss …show more content…

The rich, upper class has hardly been affected, if at all by the Great Depression. Rather they have benefitted from it.

The lower class though is a whole different story. Farmers fell into debt due to oncoming droughts and falling prices. Many farmers were also evicted by the bank, however were saved due to the relief work provided by the Government and due to legislation. But many believed that the workers had it the worst, as they were the ones going through unemployment.
They were the ones who came home night after night without food and money for their family. They were the ones who were haunted day and night by the horrors of the Depression and the thought of suicide.
First the government relied on charities to provide for the unemployed. But this became too hard so the government introduced the susso or the dole. There was also some relief work but the wages were hardly sufficient.
Seeing all this going on in the streets that were once bustling with life and freedom makes my heart clench. To see what people’s lives has reduced to. This is what our life has become. And I am not the only one to have commented on this utter devastation and heartache. Many people such as Sir Edmund Wilson and the Sydney Morning Herald have also given their thoughts about this global