The government of United States of America came up with programs after the Great Depression in a bid to revive various sectors of their economy. The New Deal was to rescue the country from great difficulties that she was experiencing at the time. Therefore, the essay below intends to discuss the person that developed and put into practice the program, the reason why its implementation was so important and five alphabetic agencies of the deal. Additionally, the discussion will focus on the aims of the deal and two groups that are considered to be disadvantaged or did not benefit like other groups from the deal.
Various Aspects of the New Deal
To start with, the person behind the deal, Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) came up with the idea and oversaw its implementation. Secondly, is the significance of the deal, and in this regard, it is important to state that, FDR, the president after the great depression saw it wise to initiate a program that will overcome unemployment, bank failures and drought that affected the US. Therefore, implementation of the new deal focused on rectifying the mistakes that Herbert Hoover, FDR’s predecessor had committed by neglecting to act during the depression (Hawley, 2015). It is for this reason that FDR, upon taking the reins of power, had to do something to stop the economic downfall.
In addition to that, the deal had three important aims, and these were; relief for those affected by hunger, recovery of both industry and agriculture and reforms to change the shape of the economy. To start with, economic reforms, Emergency Banking Act was put in place to stabilize banking sector. In addition to that, there was relief meant to provide temporary assistance to Americans who suffered most and without jobs (Sullivan, 2014). These measures included but were not limited to reforming public works, farms and rural areas. Lastly, there was an aspect of recovery, which aimed at improving the state of the economy.
As part of the new deal, FDR introduced various programs for recovery, relief, and reforms. The programs were in form of agencies denoted in alphabetic order. Thus, it is important to look at five of these agencies. To start with, the first one, which is, Civilian Conservation Corps, this was an agency put in place in 1933 and stayed in place for duration of ten years. The role of the agency was to conserve resources, for instance; trees, parks, building roads and preventing further soil erosion. The agency employed over 2.5 million young Americans to carry out environmental programs. The men employed were paid 30 US dollars a month and built most of the recreational places found in America (Tindall, " Shi, 2016). Additionally, about 8500 women were employed as well for similar programs. The second alphabetic agency was Civil Works Administration, which was set up in 1933, and was in place for about a year. The aim of this program was to solve unemployment issue that was rampant during the great depression. In particular, the program was able to offer jobs to over four million Americans who worked on sewers, roads, and schools. Those employed were paid 15 US dollars a week. The third alphabetic agency was the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation formed in 1933 as a way of reviving the banking sector. One of the most important things to note in the creation of this agency is the passing of the Glass-Steagall Act which set forth strict rules towards banks. Moreover, the Act made it possible to offer depositors with insurance rising to five thousand US dollars. It is this measures that helped restore confidence to depositors. Moreover, Federal Emergency Relief Administration just like other agencies was formed in 1933 to take care of relief programs. Some of the functions of this agency included assistance to unemployed, literacy classes and vaccinations. Lastly, there was the Tennessee Valley Authority which has been touted as the most ambitious when compared to all the other programs (Tindall, " Shi, 2016). In particular, the program lowered the cost of housing, provided jobs and involved in conservation projects. Although the new deal was good, not all groups benefitted from the deal.
To start with, Native Americans, the new deal did not favor them at all. Instead of helping this group, the white Americans concentrated on assimilation policy. According to statistics, the natives had the highest mortality rate when compared to whites, they also suffered from poverty. In particular, John Collier attempted to change legislation in a bid to suppress and assimilate natives (Tindall, " Shi, 2016). Another group that did not benefit a lot from the deal was women because more preference was given to men as compared to women. Although few jobs were set aside for women, there were still deliberate attempts by the FDR administration to isolate them from important programs.
Conclusion
It is evident from the discussion above that the New Deal, initiated by FDR was instrumental in providing relief, bringing about recovery of the economy and introducing reforms to solve problems brought about by the great depression. Although the deal was beneficial, Native Americans and women benefitted the least.
References
Hawley, E. W. (2015). The New Deal and the problem of monopoly. Princeton University Press.
Sullivan, P. (2014). Days of hope: Race and democracy in the New Deal era. Univ of North Carolina Press.
Tindall, G. B., " Shi, D. E. (2016). America: A narrative history. WW Norton " Company.
