FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT’S NEW

DEAL

FDR: The Man Distant cousin of Teddy Married to Teddy’s niece Longest serving President (12 years) Only child of wealthy NY family Lost as VP candidate in 1920

FDR: The Man

Disability – Paralyzed by polio in 1921Decided to resume careerEventually regained full power

of upper bodyRequired crutches, braces, or a

wheelchair1928 – campaigned from a car

and wheelchair

FDR: The Man

Wife, Eleanor, became most active 1st lady in historyStrained relationship, but

mutual respectSocial conscienceGreatest Achievement: UN

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Selections from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (no notes)

• Article 1: All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

• Article 3: Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.

• Article 5: No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

• Article 9: No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.

• Article 15: (2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality.

• Article 19: Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

• Article 21: (1) Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or through freely chosen representatives.

• Article 22: Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security and is entitled to realization, through national effort and international co-operation and in accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for his dignity and the free development of his personality.

• Article 23(1) Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.

• (2) Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.

• 4) Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests.

• Article 25: (1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of

unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.

• Article 26: (2) Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace.

• Article 30: Nothing in this Declaration may be interpreted as implying for any State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or to perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms set forth herein.

New Deal Philosophy

Campaign: Vague promises but no concrete programsCommitted to action and experimentation

The Three R’sRelief for people out of workRecovery for business and economyReform of American economic institutions

New Deal Philosophy

Brain Trust: Advisors from New YorkPolitical: Louis HoweEconomic: Professors

Record number of African American, Catholic, Jewish, and female administrative employeesFirst female cabinet secretary: Labor:

Frances Perkins

The 1st Hundred Days

Nation Desperate Special 100 day session

of CongressPassed every requestMore major legislation

than any Congress in history

The 1st Hundred Days

Bank HolidayMarch 6, 1933: Banks closed,

only allowed to reopen when solvent

Repeal of Prohibition Beer-Wine Revenue Act

Fireside ChatsAssured radio listeners banks

would be safe

The 1st Hundred Days

Financial Recovery ProgramsEmergency Banking Relief Fund: that whole bank

deal we done been talkin’ ‘boutFederal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC): guaranteed

deposits up to $5000Home Owners Loan Corporation (HOLC):

refinancing of small homes to prevent foreclosuresFarm Credit Administration: low-interest farm loans

to prevent foreclosures

The 1st Hundred Days

Work ProgramsFederal Emergency Relief Administration

(FERA): Grants to states and cities that offered relief for jobless and homeless

Public Works Administration (PWA): Money to states and cities for building roads, bridges, dams, and other public works

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC): Men working on federal lands

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA): Regional development building dams, power plants, flood control, cheap power

The 1st Hundred Days

Industrial Recovery ProgramNational Recovery Administration

(NRA)○ Tried to guarantee reasonable

profits and fair wages○ Antitrust laws temp. suspended○ Set wages, hours, production,

prices○ Workers got right to bargain

collectively○ Two years later declared

unconstitutional

The 1st Hundred Days

Farm Production and ControlSimilar to NRAEncouraged farmers to reduce

productionPaid subsidies for acres plowed

underAlso declared unconstitutional

in 3 years

Not The 1st Hundred Days Other programs of the 1st New Deal

Civil Works Administration (CWA) –Hired labors for temporary construction projects

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) – created to regulate the stock market and limit practices that led to Crash of 1929

Federal Housing Administration (FHA) – insured bank loans for building houses and repairing old ones

U.S. got off the gold standard

Second New Deal

1st New Deal mostly focused on Recovery

1934 midterms ushered in a Democratic mandate

Concentrated on Relief and Reform

Second New Deal

Relief ProgramsWorks Progress Administration

(WPA) – Employed 3.4 million people who had been on relief rolls○ Paid them double relief rate, still

less than going wage○ Construction jobs most common○ Artists, writers, actors paid to

write, paint, act○ National Youth Administration

(NYA) – work program for students to stay in school

Second New Deal Reform programs

National Labor Relations Act/Wagner Act of 1935 – Replaced the NIRA after declared unconstitutional○ Guaranteed a worker’s right to

join a union and a UNION’S RIGHT TO BARGAIN COLLECTIVELY

○ NLRB empowered to enforce the law and make sure that workers’ rights were protected

Second New Deal

Relief programsRural Electrification Administration (REA)Federal Taxes – revenue act increased tax

on incomes of the wealthy few ($50,000+) to 79% from 63% and taxed large gifts from parent to child and on capital gains

Social Security Act 1935 Most significant New Deal

legislation Federal insurance program

from automatic collection of taxes throughout working career

Monthly payments to retired persons over the age of 65, unemployed, blind, disabled, dependent children and mothers

Oops! 1935, life expectancy for African Americans

was 53, didn’t reach 65 until 1973 Currently full retirement age is 67 2005:

Average monthly benefit for retired workers: $1,177$1,177 *61 months= $71,798

Life ExpectancyWhite Black

78.3 73.2