Life in the Great Depression

Section 3 Step-by-Step SECTION 3 Life in the Great Depression Review and Preview Students have read about FDR s New Deal programs to help lift the country out of the Depression. They will now read about how the Depression affected daily life for many Americans. Section Focus Question How did the Great Depression affect daily life? Before you begin the lesson for the day, write the Section Focus Question on the board. (Lesson focus: The Great Depression caused great difficulties in everyday life for many Americans.) Prepare to Read Build Background Knowledge Ask students to recall the Depression-era photographs they saw in Section 1 on p. 773. Then have students predict the ways that the Great Depression affected the everyday life of people. Ask: How do you think the Depression affected particular groups of people such as women or African Americans? (Students responses will vary, but should reflect an understanding of the hardships faced by most Americans during the Great Depression.) After they make predictions about what they will learn, address any misconceptions that students may have about the topic. Remind them to confirm or revise their predictions after they read the section. Set a Purpose Form students into pairs or groups of four. Distribute the Reading Readiness Guide. Ask students to fill in the first two columns of the chart. Teaching Resources, Unit 8, Reading Readiness Guide, p. 18 Use the Numbered Heads participation strategy (TE, p. T24) to call on students to share one piece of information they already know and one piece they want to know. The students will return to these worksheets later. Objectives 1. Discover how the Great Depression and the New Deal affected women, African Americans, Mexican Americans, and Native Americans. 2. Learn about the causes and effects of the Dust Bowl. 3. Understand how art, radio, and movies informed and entertained people during the Depression. During the Depression, many women had to find ways to help support their families. domestic (doh MEHS tihk) adj. having to do with the home or housework 782 Chapter 23 The Great Depression and the New Deal Differentiated Prepare to Read L1 Less Proficient Readers L1 Special Needs Unfamiliar Words Suggest to students that they use a ruler to help them keep their place as they read, line by line, down a page. Have students mark unfamiliar Reading Skill Analyze Effects Effects are the results of an action, event, or attitude. Often an action, event, or attitude will have several effects. Certainly, the events of the Great Depression had dramatic effects on American business, families, and culture. As you read this section, ask yourself: What happened to businesses and individuals because of these events? How did American culture change because of these events? High-Use Words domestic, p. 782 confer, p. 783 Key Terms and People Eleanor Roosevelt, p. 783 civil rights, p. 784 Mary McLeod Bethune, p. 784 Marian Anderson, p. 784 migrant worker, p. 784 John Collier, p. 785 John Steinbeck, p. 786 Background Knowledge In Section 2, you saw how the New Deal attempted to relieve hard times. In this section, you will see how the Great Depression and New Deal affected everyday life. Women in the Depression With so many men out of work, many Americans felt that women should stay at home. Yet, women often had to help support themselves or their families. By the end of the Great Depression, more women were working outside the home than at the start. Women in the Workplace Women enjoyed two small advantages in the workplace. Female salesclerks and secretaries faced little competition from men. In addition, such jobs were less likely to disappear than the factory jobs many men held. Still, most women with jobs struggled. For example, women who had trained to become schoolteachers or librarians suddenly found themselves competing for jobs with men who had lost other work. Female factory workers were more likely than men to lose their jobs or to have their wages cut. Many maids, seamstresses, and housekeepers also lost their jobs because fewer people could afford domestic help. African American women were especially hard hit because they held the majority of domestic jobs. The Great Depression complicated life for most women, whether or not they worked outside the home. To save money, more women found themselves sewing clothes, canning fruits and vegetables, and baking bread instead of buying it. words or phrases (such as complicated on this page) with a sticky note. Review with students occasionally to see what they have marked. 782 Chapter 23

History Background 6593 An Active First Lady The most famous working woman in the country was FDR s wife, Eleanor Roosevelt. After polio had stricken her husband in 1921, Mrs. Roosevelt overcame her shyness to begin speaking and traveling on his behalf. Eleanor Roosevelt helped transform the role of First Lady. The wives of earlier Presidents had hosted teas and stayed in the background. By contrast, the energetic Mrs. Roosevelt crisscrossed the country, serving as the President s eyes and ears. Then, she conferred with FDR on what she had seen and what he should do. In 1933 alone, Eleanor Roosevelt logged 40,000 miles, including a trip down into a West Virginia coal mine. She also made frequent radio speeches and wrote a daily newspaper column. Mrs. Roosevelt used her position to champion women s rights. She held press conferences limited to female reporters. She also urged FDR to appoint more women to government positions. What challenges did women face during the Great Depression? African Americans in the Depression African Americans had been hit hard by the Depression. They generally suffered more unemployment, homelessness, illness, and hunger than did whites. South and North In the South, plunging cotton prices forced many African American sharecroppers off their land. Moving to southern cities, they found that many jobs traditionally done by blacks, such as cleaning streets, were now filled by jobless whites. By 1932, more than half the African Americans in the South were unemployed. For Women and Workers Frances Perkins was the first woman to be appointed as a Cabinet member. Franklin D. Roosevelt named her Secretary of Labor in 1933. During her 12-year term she worked hard to improve conditions for workers, especially women and children. She pushed for the establishment of a minimum wage and Eleanor Roosevelt Born to a wealthy New York family, Eleanor Roosevelt spent much of her time as First Lady visiting the needy. At far left, she greets two children with polio the same disease that struck her husband. At left, she descends into a coal mine. Critical Thinking: Apply Information How did Eleanor Roosevelt assist the President? confer (kahn FER) v. to exchange ideas with someone The New Deal offered some opportunities to African Americans, but many others faced even harder times. Section 3 Life in the Great Depression 783 a maximum work week. She also worked against child labor and helped draft the act that created the Social Security system. During her time as head of the New York State Industrial Board, Perkins won a reduced work week for women from 52 hours to 48. Students will read more about Perkins in Section 4 of this chapter. Teach Women in the Depression p. 782 High-Use Words Before teaching this section, preteach the High-Use Words domestic and confer, using the strategy on TE p. 769. Key Terms Have students continue filling in the See It Remember It chart for the Key Terms in this chapter. Read Women in the Depression with students using the Oral Cloze strategy (TE, p. T22). Discuss with students the unique ways in which the Depression affected women. Ask: Why did women face new competition from men for jobs during the Depression? (Men who were out of work began seeking jobs that had been traditionally filled by women.) Use the transparency Migrant Mother, 1936 by Dorothea Lange to engage students in the topic of women in the depression. Color Transparencies, Migrant Mother, 1936 by Dorothea Lange Ask: In what way was Eleanor Roosevelt a role model for women during the Depression? (Like many women, she responded to new needs by taking on a new role, in her case crisscrossing the country to gather information and advise the President.) Have students begin to fill in the Study Guide for this section. As students fill in the Notetaking Study Guide, circulate to make sure students understand the challenges women faced during the Depression. Provide assistance as needed. Apply Information She spoke and traveled on his behalf and conferred with him about important issues facing the country. Women faced job losses, new job competition from men, and challenges to find new ways to save money. Chapter 23 Section 3 783

African Americans in the Depression p. 783 Have students read African Americans in the Depression. Remind students to look for support of the main idea. Discuss the impact of the Great Depression on African Americans. Ask: What do you think the phrase the last hired and the first fired means? (It means that blacks had more difficulty than whites finding jobs and often were the first workers to lose their jobs when employers made cuts.) Discuss with students FDR s mixed record on civil rights. Ask: What facts on p. 784 explain the meaning of the heading FDR s Mixed Record? (Possible answer: Roosevelt refused to support an antilynching bill, but appointed at least 100 African Americans to government posts.) Have students continue filling in the Study Guide for this section. As students fill in the Notetaking Study Guide, circulate to make sure students understand the impact of the Depression on African Americans. If students do not seem to have a good understanding, have them reread the section. Provide assistance as needed. Biography Quest Marian Anderson 1897 1993 Marian Anderson began singing in a local Philadelphia church at the age of six. By 1934, she was singing for the kings of Sweden and Denmark. Anderson is best remembered for her 1939 concert at the Lincoln Memorial. At first, she shied away from the attention. But she realized, I had become, whether I liked it or not, a symbol, representing my people. What other barriers did Anderson break in her career? For: The answer to the question about Anderson Visit: PHSchool.com Web Code: mvd-8233 During the Great Depression, many Mexican Americans were expelled from the country, and new laws changed the lives of Native Americans. The migration of African Americans to the North, which had started after World War I, continued at an even faster pace. Even in northern cities, though, more black than white factory workers lost their jobs. African Americans were usually the last hired and the first fired. In New York, almost 50 percent of blacks were jobless. FDR s Mixed Record The majority of African American voters had backed Roosevelt. Still, the President had a mixed record on civil rights. Civil rights are the rights guaranteed in the Constitution, especially voting and equal treatment under the law. For example, FDR failed to support a federal antilynching bill, which his wife strongly supported. The President feared that he might lose the support of southern senators for his New Deal programs. Still, in part due to his wife s prodding, Roosevelt appointed at least 100 African Americans to government posts. Educator Mary McLeod Bethune, a friend of Eleanor Roosevelt s, became the topranking African American in the government. Bethune was a member of FDR s Black Cabinet, a group of high-ranking appointees who advised the President on African American issues. Other members of the Black Cabinet included William Hastie, who later became the first African American federal judge. A Symbolic Moment In 1939, the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) refused to allow African American singer Marian Anderson to perform at their hall. Eleanor Roosevelt, a DAR member, resigned in protest. She then arranged for Anderson to sing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on Easter Sunday. Anderson s performance drew a crowd of 75,000 listeners. The concert became a key symbol of the struggle for civil rights. What was the Black Cabinet? Other Americans in the Depression All Americans were affected by the Depression. Yet, some faced special circumstances. Many Mexicans and Mexican Americans were not only forced out of work but also out of the country. Meanwhile, the New Deal meant a new government policy toward Native Americans. Mexican Immigrants Are Deported Many Mexican immigrants lived in the Southwest as migrant workers, people who travel from farm to farm picking crops. During good times, farm owners had welcomed the Mexicans, who were willing to toil for low wages under harsh conditions. During the Depression, though, thousands of white migrant workers also flooded the area looking for work. 784 Chapter 23 The Great Depression and the New Deal Marian Anderson also performed with the Metropolitan Opera, served as an alternate delegate to the United Nations, and received the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The Black Cabinet was a group of high-ranking appointees who advised Roosevelt on African American issues. Differentiated L3 Advanced Readers L3 Gifted and Talented Write a Biography John Collier extended New Deal programs to Native Americans through his leadership as Commissioner of Indian Affairs. Have students research Collier s life and write a report on their findings. Ask students to focus not just on Collier s achievements as a government leader, but also on what his accomplishments meant for all Native Americans coping with poverty. Have students present their reports to the class. 784 Chapter 23

Many Americans wanted the government to force the Mexicans out of the country. Federal immigration officials rounded up hundreds of thousands of people and deported them to Mexico. Some of those deported were not immigrants but were citizens who had been born in the United States. The Indian New Deal A law in 1924 had granted American citizenship to Native Americans. Still, when the Great Depression hit, most of the nation s 170,000 Indians lived in poverty on reservations administered by the government. Under FDR, John Collier became Commissioner of Indian Affairs. Collier, a white man who had lived among the Pueblo Indians of New Mexico, embarked on an ambitious program that became known as the Indian New Deal. With funding from federal agencies, he hired Native Americans to build needed schools, hospitals, and irrigation systems. Collier also hoped to put reservations under Indian control, stop sales of Native American lands, and encourage Indian schools to teach Native American history and the arts. Congress approved part of Collier s plan in the Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) of 1934. The IRA did restrict tribal land sales. Yet, it failed to bring self-government to the tribes or to promote education. Native Americans continued to be the poorest Americans. Why were many Mexican Americans expelled from the country during the Great Depression? The Dust Bowl In the southwestern Plains, farmers already suffering the effects of the Great Depression faced another disaster. In 1930, very little rain fell. The resulting drought caused widespread crop failure and sent storms of dust swirling across the land. These gigantic dust storms lasted for five years, turning 100 million acres of rich farmland into a wasteland known as the Dust Bowl. Black Blizzards Modern farming methods contributed to the Dust Bowl. Mechanical farming equipment, which had made farming easier, encouraged farmers to clear huge plots of land. They removed native grasses along with the sod formed by the grass roots. This sod layer, however, had held the dry Plains soil in place. When the rains failed, the rootless soil blew away like powder. (See the Geography and History feature following this section.) Some dust storms arose so suddenly that people called them black blizzards. Black blizzards made noon seem like midnight, buried fences, seeped into houses, and killed people and animals. We went to school with headlights on and with dust masks on, recalled one man. Native Americans and the New Deal In addition to the Indian Reorganization Act, Native Americans benefited from other New Deal programs. These farmers display the blue eagle, symbol of the National Recovery Act. Critical Thinking: Apply Information What was the Indian New Deal? Drought and dust storms brought misery to farmers on the Plains. Other Americans in the Great Depression The Dust Bowl pp. 784 785 Have students read Other Americans in the Great Depression and The Dust Bowl. Remind students to look for support of the main ideas. Ask: What is a migrant worker? (a person who travels from farm to farm picking crops) Ask: How did the Great Depression affect many Mexican migrant workers? (Many faced job competition from whites, and hundreds of thousands were deported by federal immigration officials.) Ask: To what location did many of the farmers affected by the Dust Bowl migrate? (to California to work on farms) Ask: Why do you think Californians were scornful of the Dust Bowl migrants? (Possible answers: The migrants were poor, they were outsiders, and they competed with local workers for jobs.) Have students continue filling in the Study Guide for this section. As students fill in the Notetaking Study Guide, circulate to make sure students understand the effects of the Depression on Mexican Americans and Native Americans and the impact of the Dust Bowl as it forced many people living in the Midwest to relocate to California in search of work. Provide assistance as needed. Section 3 Life in the Great Depression 785 History Background Causes of the Great Migration The Great Migration, which gained momentum during the Depression, continued for decades and had a variety of causes. The general causes were the needs of people in the south to find better jobs and the desire to escape the brutality of southern segregation. But there were also several specific causes. A boll weevil infestation in southern cotton fields in the first two decades of the twentieth century greatly affected sharecroppers, many of whom were African Americans. World War I created a labor shortage in northern cities for manufacturing jobs, attracting southern African Americans. A devastating flood of the Mississippi River in 1927 also drove thousands of sharecroppers north. Apply Information The Indian New Deal was a program created by John Collier that gave Native Americans jobs with building projects and worked toward putting Native American reservations under Native American control. They were caught up as federal immigration officials, under pressure from many Americans competing for the same jobs, deported illegal immigrants. Chapter 23 Section 3 785

Arts and Media of the Depression p. 786 Have students read Arts and Media of the Depression. Remind students to look for causes and effects. Ask a volunteer to read aloud the excerpt from The Grapes of Wrath. Ask: Why does Steinbeck use nonstandard spelling and grammar in this passage? (Possible answer: He is trying to capture accurately Ma Joad s Okie accent and manner of speaking.) Ask: What was the impact of the Depression on her family? (It had broken up her family.) Have students complete the Study Guide for this section. As students complete the Notetaking Study Guide, circulate to make sure students understand the importance of the arts and media during the Depression. Provide assistance as needed. Tell students to fill in the last column of the Reading Readiness Guide. Ask them to evaluate if what they learned was what they had expected to learn. Teaching Resources, Unit 8, Reading Readiness Guide, p. 18 Apply Information The subject of dam building shows progress and improvement through public works. Analyze Effects Falling crop prices throughout the 1920s reduced incomes for farmers in the Midwest. Modern farming methods that had allowed farmers to clear large plots of land removed native grasses from the land and allowed the soil to become loose and blow away. As a result of the land becoming more difficult to farm, many Midwesterners relocated to California where they worked as migrants. The causes of the Dust Bowl were a widespread drought and modern farming methods that stripped the layer of sod from the soil, allowing the soil to be blown away. Artists of the Depression William Gropper created this painting, Construction of the Dam, for the Department of the Interior in 1937. The vibrant colors and dynamic poses reflect the strength of the men who labored on public works projects during the New Deal. Critical Thinking: Apply Information Why was dam building a fitting subject for a painting during the era of the New Deal? Analyze Effects Review and analyze the effects of the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl on farmers in the Great Plains. Some artists and writers tried to give a realistic picture of hard times. 786 Chapter 23 The Great Depression and the New Deal Differentiated L1 English Language Learners L1 Special Needs Okies Head West By the thousands, ruined farm families abandoned their dusty homes to seek work elsewhere. In some of the worst-hit Dust Bowl counties, as many as one family in three left. Many headed west to the rich farmlands of California. California residents scornfully called the migrants Okies because so many had come from Oklahoma. The migratory agricultural workers found conditions in California almost as miserable as the ones they had left. Unable to buy land, they competed with local workers to pick crops at starvation wages. The police eventually closed some roads entering the state. Still, the migrants kept coming. What were the causes of the Dust Bowl? Arts and Media of the Depression In 1939, writer John Steinbeck captured the miseries of the Dust Bowl in The Grapes of Wrath. The novel told the story of the Joads, Okies who seek a better life in California. In one scene, Ma Joad describes how her family has been shattered by hard times: They was the time when we was on the lan. They was a boundary to us then. Ol folks died off, and little fellas come, an we was always one thing we was the fambly kinda whole and clear. An now we ain t clear no more. Pa s lost his place. He ain t the head no more. We re cracking up, Tom. There ain t no fambly now. John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath Steinbeck s novel became the classic example of how American writers and artists tried to cope with the human toll of the Great Depression. Listening to the Text Have students read the text of this section as they listen to the SE on Audio CD. Monitor student answers to Checkpoint questions to make sure that they understand the material. Provide students with a copy of the CD to work independently at home or in the School Resource Center. SE on Audio CD, Chapter 23, Section 3 786 Chapter 23

Visual Arts Photographers and painters used the Depression as a theme for their art. Under a New Deal program called the Farm Security Administration, photographer Dorothea Lange recorded the experiences of Dust Bowl migrants. Her classic photograph of a woman migrant farmworker remains the symbol of the Depression. As you have read, the WPA hired artists to paint murals on public buildings. The realistic, colorful murals of artists such as Thomas Hart Benton paid tribute to the lives of ordinary working people. Movies and Radio During the Depression, some movies dealt realistically with social problems. These included a 1940 movie version of The Grapes of Wrath. Gangster films, such as The Public Enemy, depicted the rise of organized crime in American cities. Most movies of the era, however, were meant to help people forget their problems. Audiences laughed at the antics of Mickey Mouse and thrilled to the adventure fantasy King Kong. One of the most popular stars was Shirley Temple, a little girl who symbolized optimism in the face of trouble. The radio was a vital part of everyday life. Families gathered in their living rooms to listen to FDR s fireside chats. For entertainment, people enjoyed popular bands and comedians. During the day, many listeners tuned in to continuing dramas sponsored by soap companies. Such serials are still known as soap operas. Section 3 How did movies and radio help Americans during the Great Depression? Looking Back and Ahead In this section, you saw how the Great Depression affected Americans of the time. In the next section, you will look at the lasting impact of the New Deal. Comprehension and Critical Thinking 1. (a) Recall How did Eleanor and Franklin Roosevelt differ in their position on a proposed antilynching bill? (b) Evaluate Information Whose position do you agree with? Explain. 2. (a) Describe What caused the Dust Bowl in the 1930s? (b) Make Predictions What do you think might finally end Dust Bowl conditions? Check Your Progress Reading Skill 3. Analyze Effects Reread the text under the heading Other Americans in the Depression. Analyze the effects of the Depression on Mexican Americans. Answer the following questions in complete sentences that show your understanding of the key terms. 4. What is the goal of people who seek civil rights? 5. What did Mexican Americans and Okies do as migrant workers? Image ssah6596- TK Poster for the 1933 movie King Kong For: Self-test with instant help Visit: PHSchool.com Web Code: mva-8233 Writing 6. Choose one of the general topics from the list that follows. Narrow that topic down to a more specific subtopic that could be covered in a multimedia presentation of 5 minutes. List three elements for that presentation. popular media of the 1930s the Dust Bowl the Depression and women the Depression and African Americans family life in the 1930s Section 3 Life in the Great Depression 787 Assess and Reteach Assess Progress Have students complete Check Your Progress. Administer the Section Quiz. Teaching Resources, Section Quiz, p. 27 To further assess student understanding, use the Progress Monitoring Transparency. Progress Monitoring Transparencies, Chapter 23, Section 3 Reteach L1 If students need more instruction, have them read this section in the Interactive Reading and Notetaking Study Guide and complete the accompanying question. Extend L3 Have students research Depression-era Farm Security Administration photographs in the online collections of the Library of Congress. Have students select and print three images from the collection. Then ask students to make a tri-panel display on which they display the images and several sentences about each image. Display students projects in the classroom. For: Help in starting the Extend activity Visit: PHSchool.com Web Code: mve-0163 Progress Monitoring Online Students may check their comprehension of this section by completing the Progress Monitoring Online graphic organizer and self-quiz. Section 3 Check Your Progress 1. (a) Eleanor strongly supported the bill, but Franklin feared that southern senators would no longer back him if he supported the bill. (b) will vary, but students responses should show an understanding of the issue. 2. (a) The Dust Bowl was caused by a period of drought, combined with modern farming methods that removed the layer of sod from the soil. (b) Possible answer: an end to the drought or improved farming methods that do not destroy the soil 3. Mexican Americans suffered from job losses and faced a backlash from other Americans with whom they were competing for jobs. 4. People who seek civil rights want everyone to have equal access to voting and equal treatment under the law. 5. They traveled from farm to farm to pick crops for low wages. Answer Most were meant to help people forget their problems, but some dealt realistically with social problems. 6. will vary, but students responses should indicate an understanding of possible subtopics that would support the topic that is chosen. Chapter 23 Section 3 787