Life in the United State between World Wars

Life in the United State between World Wars

American history after the Great War evokes emotions of both joy and sadness. Though the US took a shorter time in the war and no battle was fought in their land, the results were devastating. Many soldiers either went missing, were wounded, or killed. Moreover, the government lost a lot of money trying to avoid a similar scenario. The end of World War I came as an awakening call for many activities in the US. Many women came out to demand education, and the African Americans also came forth to fight for the rights. However, history will never forget the economic challenges during that period. Many people lost their jobs as others emigrate to seek better opportunities. To have a complete picture of the situation it is imperative to assess the great depression and impacts it had on the marginalized groups.

A prosperous economy and a sudden crush is the main characteristic of the American economy between the wars. The election of President Hoover came as a relief as the man was known to be a reformist. Hoover created many changes that transformed the American economy.

For instance, he brought to an end organized crimes, help farmers in marketing, created veterans’ fund and revolutionized the correction system. These changes stimulate the economy and attracted many investors in the 1920s. This growth attracted many investors who bought shares from different companies. In addition, various schemes emerged to take advantage of the millions that were exchanging hands daily. Though such transactions were questionable, people ignored warnings as success seemed inevitable. The trend continues until October, Black Tuesday, when investors lost millions leading to a rush to withdraw investments, and eventually, the stock market crashed.

The 1929 crush was not accidental and is explainable from three perspectives. First, the American banks took loaned money to countries that had lost the Great War to pay their debt to the US. However, since the loaned nations were struggling financially, they defaulted some loans creating a severe crisis in American banks. The second explanation was the disparity in income distribution. Finally, Americans were overconfident about their economy. The euphoria on the economy made them invest without questioning. When the panic arose, they sold their stock and caused devastating losses.

President Hoover tried to resolve the situation but met with criticism until the new deal under the administration of Franklin Roosevelt. One of the significant changes was creating mass employment through the Federal Emergency Act (FERA) and Civilian Conservative Corps Relief Act (CCC). Reducing unemployment was a crucial strategy for Roosevelt to revamp the economy. Some of these jobs came from reforms like the National Industry Recovery Act (NIRA) and Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) that rescued the factories and farms, respectively. In addition, the president segmented the development agenda into regions to have plans that met specific needs.

Though the new deal had a positive impact on the economy, minorities like African Americans were left out. There claims of discrimination in hiring. Most black farmers were also never benefited from AAA. Another case was the exclusion of domestic workers from accessing social security, a majority of who were African Americans. As the problem got worse, Roosevelt responded to criticism and reviewed the hiring policies. Even in his administration, the few African American hired got lower positions. As more pressure piled, the president created new systems reserved spots for the minority and opened up education opportunities making African Americans eligible for more posts. Women are another group that suffered in the new deal. Relief policies discouraged women’s labor, and those who got to work experienced wage discrimination.

In summary, the Great Depression came as a result of high and low economic situations. The crush was not accidental. Issues such as overconfidence in the economy, differences in income distribution, and the lending system had significant input in the crush. After the crush, Roosevelt signed a new deal that created more jobs and revived the agricultural and economic sectors. These changes brought back life to the economy despite the discrimination on minority groups such as women and African Americans.