The Impact of the Great Depression on Black Americans Essay

The Impact of the Great Depression on Black Americans The stock market crash of October 1929 was the prelude to the Great Depression. It was a time of hardship and sorrow for many people. American morale was low, and money and food were scarce. Poverty and despair, however, were not foreign to the Black Americans; poverty had been common to them since their days of captivity. To many Black Americans who lived in the south, it was the return of old times. Sharecroppers and farm workers always lived in the midst of strife; they were never able to make a decent living. The boll weevil, soil erosion, and foreign competition had destroyed the cotton crop in the early Twenties. Life was difficult. No profits were being made, and†¦show more content†¦Americans roamed the streets searching for shelter in municipal lodging houses or Hoovervilles; some lived in railroad boxcars or constructed tents in vacant lots. When Franklin Roosevelt came to office in 1933, he emphasized relief, recovery, and reform through a program called the New Deal, but he had no plan to combat racial bias in the allotment of federal funds. Many Black Americans were unsure how much government help they would receive through this new program; the amount of relief that blacks received depended heavily upon the bias of the individual who headed each program. The Agricultural Adjustment Administration (AAA) was designed to raise agricultural prices by paying farmers to cut production. Landowners were given this money and expected to distribute it among their tenants and sharecroppers; however, landowners rarely gave this money to their black workers. These black workers did not accuse their landowners of witholding money because they feared losing their jobs. Black Americans were also hurt through the National Recovery dministration (NRA). The NRA was formed to establish minimum wages for all workers, but these wages tend ed to hurt blacks, especially in the South with the enforcement of Black Codes. Because wages were equal for blacks and whites, many owners fired blacks to replace them with white workers. The higher wages enforced by the NRA caused prices to rise, but blacks often did notShow MoreRelatedHow did the events of the 1930’s impact African Americans prospects?809 Words   |  4 Pages1930’s impact African Americans prospects? Charlie Wilson The 1930’s was a time of great struggle in the USA. The New York stock market crashed in 1929 and triggered a spiral of economic depression, which hit African Americans hard. The Great Depression had a huge impact on African Americans. The Great Depression of the 1930s was catastrophic for all workers. But as usual, African Americans suffered worse, pushed out of unskilled jobs previously scorned by whites before the depression. AfricanRead MoreAnalysis Of Curley s Of Mice And Men 949 Words   |  4 Pages Crooks in Of Mice and Men Of Mice and Men took place during the Great Depression where the stock market crashed. Crooks lives by himself because he is the only black man on the ranch, feeling left out Crooks throws himself into reading books. Crooks longing to be a part of civilization, but because of the black and whites rules Crooks can’t be part the boy’s interaction. His American Dream is to be free and be able to join the man, that why he wanted to have his only farmRead MoreNational And International Level Events1100 Words   |  5 Pageseconomically through the depression and multiple wars and socially through the removal of the Japanese and the increased migration of African Americans. All together these factors shaped and molded the Pacific Northwest to create what it is today. National and international events had a major impact on the economy of the Pacific Northwest. During the 20th century there took place a large economic downturn in the industrial world, and countless people went unemployed. Called the Great Depression, it impactedRead MoreThe Black Renaissance And The Great Depression971 Words   |  4 Pageshistory African Americans have not had it easy. Blacks in America have had a long struggle to gain equality and freedom, which still exists to this day. The years 1917 to 1945 were particularly tough for African Americans. Racial discrimination was at a high and segregation laws enforced the idea that blacks were inferior to the whites. African Americans desired to escape the unfair treatment and obtain equal rights, but found themselves stuck. The two World Wars drew African Americans North in searchRead More America During WWII Essay1616 Words   |  7 PagesRoosevelt marks the address to congress concerning one of the most impacting events i n the history of the United States: the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Twentieth century American history was filled with monumental events. From the assassination of William McKinley and subsequent presidency of Theodore Roosevelt, to Black Thursday in 1929, to the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965; numerous events throughout the last century helped mold the landscape ofRead MoreOf Mice And Men By John Steinbeck1150 Words   |  5 PagesSteinbeck in 1937 is a novel that juxtaposes hope and dreams against hardships and perseverance. Readers are positioned to accept the unattainability of the American dream during the great depression. The statement â€Å"...every damn one of ‘em’s got a little piece of land in his head. And never a God damn one of ‘em ever gets it† (Pg.73) is plausible to a great extent, exemplified through the failure of several characters hoping in achieving their own dreams. This is mainly emph asised with George and Lennie’sRead MoreMarch 4, 1929. Americans Appeared Shine Brightly When Herbert1326 Words   |  6 PagesMarch 4, 1929. Americans appeared shine brightly when herbert Hoover was elected President. October 24, 1929, at the same year happened, the longest and deepest depression of United States, the Great Depression. Known as Black days, October 24 and October 26 it was the collapse for this depression, 16 million stocks were traded, by any price. Banks were calling for loan, Dow Jones fells 23%, $30 billion in stock were â€Å"disappeared†, unemployment rate is higher than 24%. Smoot-Hawley tariff   Act, NewRead MoreEssay on Americas Dark Period of the Great Depression981 Words   |  4 PagesThe Great Depression is one of the darkest periods in America’s history. It was a time of despair for all Americans. The Great Depression was caused by various reasons. It also had many effects which left an impact on America still up to this day. A t that time, there was no abundance of anything: not jobs, not food, and certainly not an abundance of money, but there was surely an abundance of sadness. America had no hope since the money was a thin, green line. The Great Depression impacted the economyRead MoreRichard Wright And The Harlem Renaissance752 Words   |  4 Pagesof African American culture and showed the unaddressed problems among the black community. During that time, Richard Wright made a name for himself, writing books based on the racism that the black community faced and communism like Black Boy and Native Son. The Harlem Renaissance was a direct influence on Wrights work because he wrote about what was going on at that time. More specifically, Black Boy was written off of Wright’s childhood struggles and what it was like to be a black kid in theRead MoreHoover And Roosevelt s Actions During The Aftermath Of The Crash Of 1929792 Words   |  4 Pageswith the economic stagnation, social hardship and p sychological impact of the depression? What needed to be fixed and which approach proved more successful? In your essay you should address not only the underlying economic and social problems that both administrations had to deal with and the various corrective measures they adopted, but also the underlying philosophical approaches of Hoover and Roosevelt and their supporters. The Great Crash also known as Stock market crash of 1929, happened in 1929