Classwork Assessment on the New Deal Programs Homework
Assessment on the Legacy of the New Deal
SOCIAL SECURITY
ADMINISTRATION
The Social Security program
provides pensions for the elderly,
aid to dependent children, relief for
the unemployed, and help for the
blind and disabled in society. It is
one of the most popular – and
expensive programs the New Deal
created, and almost every American
relies on Social Security during their
retirement.
THE FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION
The FDIC insures your bank deposit account up to $250,000 today. When the program first
started, it insured bank deposits up to $5,000. FDR conceived the idea in order to restore
confidence in the banks. After the stock market collapse of 1929 and the thousands of bank
failures which followed, many Americans had decided that keeping their money under their
mattresses was a better, safer, plan.
FEDERAL EMERGENCY RELIEF ADMINISTRATION
This program was a direct handout from the federal government to the states. States were better
able to target areas of need in their specific localities, giving money to churches, soup kitchens,
food banks, and other charitable organizations which could best address the needs of the poor
and unemployed.
THE WAGNER ACT –
THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
Unions were empowered with the right
to collective bargaining with certain
employers, and the National Labor
Relations Board was set up in order to
resolve longstanding disputes over
wages, working hours, safety conditions,
and the rights of workers. Although
strong support for unions never really
emerged during the Great Depression
and gains were hard to come by, the
favorable conditions for unions under
Franklin Delano Roosevelt did produce
some results: John L. Lewis, the leader of
the American Mine Workers, created an
umbrella organization of unskilled
laborers known as The Congress of
Industrial Organizations.
THE PUBLIC WORKS ADMINISTRATION
This program focused on creating
massive work projects like the
Boulder Dam, bridges, highways,
schools, or ports. It hired millions
or workers – some skilled and
some unskilled – in order to
complete massive projects. In
addition to employing millions and
accomplishing huge tasks, the
program was expensive. Most of
the dams, bridges, and buildings
were built using public money!
NATIONAL YOUTH
ADMINISTRATION
Mary McLeod Bethune was the
leader of this organization,
which gave job training and
education to over 600,000
youths, especially AfricanAmericans. The program was
essentially an apprenticeship
organization, which gave
students marketable job skills
in the hopes that the economy
would recover in time for
them to get to work using
them.
THE NATIONAL RECOVERY
ADMINISTRATION
The National Recovery was the
centerpiece of FDR’s New Deal;
however, it placed important
restrictions on businesses ability to
make choice about wages, hiring and
firing of employees, and the cost of
goods. Because it went against
traditional American beliefs in free
market capitalism and laissez-faire
economic principles, the NRA was
ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme
Court. When the NRA and several
other New Deal programs were ruled
unconstitutional, FDR responded
aggressively. He attempted to reshape
the Supreme Court by appointing six
new justices to the court, which would
have supported his programs and
ideas. Most Americans, however, were
outraged that he would attempt to
disrupt the system of checks and
balances which were in place.
THE AGRICULTURAL ADJUSTMENT ACT
This government program actually
paid farmers money NOT TO
GROW CROPS! By regulating farm
production and encouraging soil
conservation, it controlled the prices
of crops and helped most
Americans. Because there were
actually children starving to death,
suffering from malnutrition, or
underfed throughout the
Depression, this program – which
was economically sensible, caused
much wrath on the part of the poor.
THE RURAL ELECTRIFICATION
ADMINISTRATION
The REA was around for a
surprisingly long time. The
program was sustained until the
1980s, wiring up hard to reach
rural areas and electrifying the
entire nation. Not only did the REA
improve the quality of life for most
Americans, but also, it ended up
creating new markets for goods –
for, every electrified household
could now purchases consumer
goods!
THE WORKS PROGRESS ADMINISTRATION
The WPA was able to provide jobs for skilled workers like teachers, artists, musicians,
writers, photographers, or actors. Additionally, it was able to employ men and women for
massive public works projects. By the end of the Great Depression, millions of unemployed
Americans had received jobs, and the literature and photographs produced by WPA
workers are still treasured today.
THE CIVILIAN CONSERVATION CORPS
This program hired millions of young men between the ages of 18 – 25 in order to work in the
national parks on programs as diverse as grading trails, building small dams and bridges, and
planting trees to restore overharvested areas of the park. In general, the men were paid low
wages, but since they had no expenses – the government provide food and shelter – they could
send most of the money home!
THE TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY
The Tennessee Valley Authority is one of the few large scale programs created during the New Deal
Era which still exists today. Not only was the program worthwhile because it was a producer of
electricity which improved the quality of life in the portion or Appalachia which was impacted by the
flooding of the Tennessee River, it was also a moneymaker. Today, the TVA continues to produce
electricity.