Great Depression Life - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 3 Words: 852 Downloads: 2 Date added: 2019/05/03 Category History Essay Level High school Tags: Great Depression Essay Did you like this example? The Great Depression was a time of pure despair and anguish for everyone in The United States of America. It left a significant impact on men, women, children and even minorities such as African Americans; The infamous dust bowl only added to the suffering. The great depression left a significant psychological impact on men and unemployment due to the sheer amount of stress and knowing that they could no longer provide for their families because of the struggling economy of the United States. In a letter to President Roosevelt a young boy wrote: My father hasnt worked for 5 months He went plenty times to relief, he filled out application. They wont give us anything. He also stated : My father he staying home. All the time hes crying because he cant find work. I told him why are you crying daddy, and daddy said why shouldnt I cry when there is nothing in the house. This became a common theme amongst men in the United States with thousands of men turning to suicide, spiking the national suicide rates to a record high in the early 1930s. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Great Depression Life" essay for you Create order Furthermore, women and children were forced to experience the harsh realities of The Great Depression. Because of the obvious lack of money families could not support themselves with enough food, or clothing. This led to the dramatic increase in women in the workforce as they began to find jobs such as nurses, clerks and other jobs in the service field. This sudden change in lifestyle was a huge deal because the idea of a woman working was looked down apon by many. In the early 1900s society only saw women as stay-at-home moms; However women joining the workforce was only the beggining of the end of discrimination . During The Great Depression thousands of children were not being educated due to the immense closing of schools throughout the nation.The National Education Association estimated that by 1934 rural poverty had closed more than 20,000 schools. Therefore children those children were forced to try to enter the work force to help provide for themselves aswell as their families. However majority of students decided they could better benifit their families by staying in school longer to recieve a better education. However, although there was suffering on a mass scale no one suffered more than African Americans. Jobs were scarce and because racism and discrimination was still prominent in the United States, African Americans and minorites were often denied jobs simply because the white man was preferable, which is supported with Broussard stating: Dallas and Houston, provided no relief funds whatsoever to African Americans or Mexicans. In Atlanta, white supremacist organizations demanded that all African American be terminated from the relief rolls to provide assistance to unemployed whites. Therefore, African Americans did not have money to provide for themselves or their families, and they often did not have homes or even shelter. Minorities had to suffer the worst of the worst with absolutly no way of making money they had to rely on their wits and creative ways of making money. However soon after, their effors were somewhat relieved when Franklin D. Roosevelt created the New Deal progams, this idea of African American growth is supported with Broussard stating : through a succession of New Deal programs such as the Public Works Administration (PWA), the National Youth Administration (NYA), the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), Works Progress Administration (WPA), and the Farm Security Administration (FSA), many Africans Americans once again gained a foothold, albeit tenuous, in the workforce. African Americans were finally being offered jobs even though they were extremely rare and labor intensive it was an improvement nonetheless. African Americans would later see another even brighter beacon of hope from President Roosevelt and even the first lady. The two would often seek guidance and knowledge on how to handle and prevent troublesome African American affairs from African American leaders. This had a major impact on the lives of African Americans becaus e no other president had sought the direct council from African Americans. All the while, as if the United States hadnt been through enough already, the infamous and devestating Dust Bowl made its appearance. Although the Dust Bowl only swept through five states, it impacted the entire nation with Colordo, Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma and New Mexico being the most severely impacted. The Dust Bowl was an enviormental catasprophe that forced millions of american to move westward in search of a new home and a new life as people were forced to leave everything behind. How does such a phenomenon occur? Broussard suggests: The problem began during World War I, when the high price of wheat and the needs of Allied troops encouraged farmers to grow more wheat by plowing and seeding areas in prairie states, such as Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico, which were formerly used only for grazing. After years of adequate yields, livestock were returned to graze the areas, and their hooves pulverized the unprotected soil. In 1934 strong winds blew the soil into huge clouds In more recent years we have dramatically improved agricultral practices to help prevent future enviornmental catastrophies.