D3: the New Deal and Race relations, 1933-41

what was the position of BA like by c1900?

• disenfranchisement took place during the redemption era

• lynching became increasingly frequent

• jim crow laws had been made de jure by 1890 decisions as opposed to de facto by 1883; south was mostly segregated

what was the new deal?

the name given to the period of extensive reform in the USA in the 1930s by president roosevelt

what was the new deal in response to?

the great depression

how did the new deal improve the lives of BA?

• improvements to working conditions and wages

• promoting black cultural excellence

how is this period notable for its failure to address major grievances?

• continuation of jim crow

• failure of federal legislation to stop lynching

  • large reason was because of roosevelts political dependence on southern democrats

why did this period see one of the largest voting swings in US history?

as a result of the concrete economic benefits of the new deal

the majority of BA changed their voting allegiance from republican to democrat

what was the date of the wall street crash?

29th october 1929

how many americans were unemployed by march 1933?

25% of all americans (approx. 15 million)

what were the 3 elements of FDR’s new deal?

recovery, relief, and reform

what was the number of votes FDR won in the first election?

57.4% = 22.8 million

define gerrymandering.

manipulating the boundaries of an electoral constituency so as to favour one party or class

why was the democrat party a challenge to control?

• democrat controlled state govts. kept power through gerrymandering

• had a big variety of political views while the north was focused on reform

what was the main aim of the roosevelt administration?

to resolve the great depression in the USA

what were the aims of the ‘alphabet agencies’?

• increased employment, skills, and rights

• immediate relief to suffering americans

• improving agriculture, production, and the economy

what were the two main organisations created under the roosevelt administration to solve unemployment?

• civilian conservation corps (CCC)

• works progress administration (WPA)

what kinds of things did the civilian conservation corps (CCC) do?

• provided work experience for men aged 17-25, run by the US army

• creation of workers camps

• taught skills and conservation → built parks and roads

when was the civilian conservation corps (CCC) created?

march 1933

how much did men working in the civilian conservation corps (CCC) earn?

$30 per month

$25 was sent home to parents/wives so the men couldn’t spend it all on booze etc.

by 1942, how many men were in the civilian conservation corps (CCC)?

3 million

what percentage of places in the civilian conservation corps (CCC) were reserved for BA?

10% in proportion to the population

how many BA were part of the civilian conservation corps (CCC) between 1933-42?

275,000 BA

when were northern CCC camps segregated and why?

july 1935 → opposition in the north and south mostly due to fears that local white girls would date the recruits

what was segregation like in CCC camps in the north and south?

north were originally desegregated but began segregating in july 1935

south was always segregated

when was the works progress administration (WPA) formed?

1935

approximately how many americans did the works progress administration (WPA) put in work?

8.5 million

at its height in 1938, how many people worked for the works progress administration (WPA)?

over 3.3 million

who was the works progress administration (WPA) led by?

harry hopkins , an enthusiastic ex-social worker

what were the aims of the works progress administration (WPA)?

to provide jobs in various sectors to those who were unemployed, stimulating the economy

divided into ‘divisions’ such as the arts, engineering, construction, and education

what african country became a symbol of black power and why?

ethiopia → it was the only country not included in the european scramble for africa

bullet point a few reasons how there was growth of black nationalism and civil rights in the 1930s.

• NAACP’s continuing legal work (including dubois’ continued activism)

• the UNIA (universal n-gro improvement association)

  • catalysed the pan-africanism movement

what was the black population in chicago in early 1930?

230,000 (compared to total 3.4 million)

what areas were BA generally limited to in chicago?

an area known as the ‘black belt’, or the south side of chicago

give 3 reasons why the south side of chicago became famous.

• the electrical machinery industry

• iron and steel production

• machine-shop and foundry production

^ 3 largest components of chicago’s manufacturing economy in 1930s

what did the census estimate was the average number of people per black and white household in chicago?

6.8 people per black household

4 people per white household

what were the unemployment rates of BA in chicago in the depression?

over 50%

what was the situation in chicago for BA with regards to employment during the depression?

BA migrants to chicago had filled the low pay/low skill jobs = they were ‘last hired, first fired’

by 1939, what percentage of relief rolls in chicago were constituted by BA?

40%

by 1939, how many black families relied on govt. aid for subsistence?

50% of black families

why did hunger marches take place in 1930s in chicago?

black people were disproportionately affected in the great depression

why was there a rise in communism in chicago in the 1930s, particularly within the black community?

mobilised the unemployed BA affected by the depression to take action

how was the press company ‘the chicago whip’ instrumental in aiding the employment crisis for BA?

ran a ‘don’t spend your money where you can’t work’ campaign → boycotting white store owners using discriminatory hiring practises

obtained over 15,000 jobs for BA

how was the ‘chicago bee’ helpful to urban race relations?

staff dominated by black women (including ida b. wells)

how was the ‘chicago defender’ helpful to urban race relations?

• encouraged BA to move to chicago

• editorialised against lynching

• promoted integrated sports

why were trade unions important?

important in securing BAs rights + roosevelt’s intention was to create a new model for employment

when was the wagner act and what did it do to benefit BA?

• 1935

• gave trade unions the right to bargain for better wages and conditions for their members collectively

• established clear rules for bargaining

• set up regional boards to identify workers who were entitled to bargain

what were southern trade unions’ opinions of BA?

southern unions accepted black members but organised their black and white members in separate organisations

what impact did trade unions have holistically on benefitting BA?

• gave BA an enhanced awareness of what they were entitled to

• increased confidence in pursuing these rights

when was the committee of industrial organisation (CIO) founded and what did it aim to do?

1935 → aimed to organise all workers in mass-production industries + abolish racial discrimination

how did the NIRA (national industry recovery act) improve race relations?

established the rights of black workers in law by recognising that the safeguard of rights was a political issue

when was the social security act and what did it do?

1935 → federal fundings provided for old-age pensions

how did the social security act (1935) exclude BA?

excluded domestic servants and agricultural workers

these areas provided 65% of work for BA

what were ‘100 days’ legislations?

important policies that were prioritised to be passed in the first 100 days of a new presidency

when was the agricultural adjustment administration (AAA) approved by roosevelt?

may 12, 1933

what did the AAA do?

promised $100 million to compensate farmers to cut back production

involved culling pigs or rejecting surplus corn in order to stabilise prices

why were the farm credit administration (FCA) and consumer credit administration (CCA) created?

to assist the AAA

what did the FCA and CCA do to aid the AAA?

• gave loans

• helped harmers pay their mortgages

how did the AAA (with assistance from the FCA and CCA) help farm income in the 1930s?

by 1934 → cut production in wheat, cotton, and corn = stabilised prices (+ farm income)

between 1932 and 1935, how much did the AAA help farm income increase by?

58%

did the AAA benefit black americans?

not always

why did black americans not benefit from the work of the AAA?

large landowners reduced their acreage to qualify for loans

the result was, by 1934, 100,000 black farmers were forced off their land

by 1940 this had doubled

in the 1930s, what percentage of black workers were sharecroppers or tenant farmers?

nearly 40% of all black workers

when was the AAA declared unconstitutional and why?

1936 → it gave the federal govt. too much power

what happened as a direct result of the AAA being declared unconstitutional?

the FSA was set up instead

when was the farm security administration (FSA) set up?

1937

what was the main thing that the FSA did?

BA appointed to ‘agency committees’ to decide where money goes around the south

why was the FSA withdrawn?

due to white backlash by southern democrats and state govts.

what two administrations (alphabet agencies) did the national industrial recovery act create?

• the national recovery administration (NRA)

• the public works administration (PWA)

what was the PWAs aim and what did they do?

aim → to create jobs + raise wages

allocated $3.3 billion for construction projects like bridges, highways, and public buildings

what did the NRA aim to do?

set fair codes of employment practise

how did the NRA attempt to set fair codes of employment practise?

• 40-hour week

• minimum $13 weekly wage ($12 in the south)

• banning of child labour (under 16s)

why did the NRA actually disadvantage black american workers?

• ‘unskilled’ jobs like cleaners/manual labourers were excluded = disproportionately affected BA

• some codes led to flat percentage wage increase

  • the pay gap actually increases because 20% of $100,000 > 20% of $20,000

when was the resettlement administration created and what was it later renamed as/merged with?

created in 1935

later merged to form the farmers security administration (FSA)

when did the FSA buy the resettlement administration and what did they do with it?

1937

FSA bought land worth $122,000 to be divided amongst the community

when did the resettlement administration shut down and why?

1938, after it lost federal govt. funding and was merged with the FSA

how were jim crow laws still prevalent, particularly in the south?

• had to use ‘coloured’ facilities (water fountains, cinema seats)

• had to sit at the back of the bus

how did the doctrine of ‘separate but equal’ still pervade life through the 1930s?

• (in southern states) separate public schools

• separate waiting rooms at railway stations

• separate railway carriages

• (in alabama) no white female nurses allowed to nurse in wards with BA men

• outlawed interracial marriage

• segregated sports

how does martin luther king jr.’s existence as a civil rights activist act as a trigger in the civil rights movement?

seeds planted that fermented the potency of jim crow = shows that the deepest, darkest period of jim crow period was over

when was louisiana’s grandfather clause overturned as unconstitutional?

1915

when did rosa parks allegedly ‘fail’ the literacy tests for voting?

1943

when was rosa parks granted the vote and under what premise?

allowed to register in 1945 → had to pay an expensive $16.50 poll tax (equivalent to $250)

why were black americans excluded from some of the positive developments of the new deal?

black people didn’t have any political power → legislation didn’t really have to cater towards them because they weren’t reliant on them for votes

how many victims of lynching were there between 1882-1932 and how many were BA?

4608 victims

7 out of 10 were BA

in the first year of roosevelt’s presidency (1933) what did the number of lynchings go from and to?

from below double figures to 28

why did anti-lynching legislation not pass in the 1930s?

• southern opposition - primarily in the US senate - often resulted in filibustering

• presidential failure to address key aspects of race relations such as lynching

what was filibustering?

the deliberate use of extensive speech-making in order to prevent a vote on a proposal

what did the anti-lynching bill the NAACP proposed at the end of 1933 say?

• punish state govt. officials who failed to apprehend a mob engaged in lynching

• state govt. officials found guilty = $5000 fine and/or 5yr jail term

• victims and families of lynching would receive $10,000

how was the NAACP’s anti-lynching proposal rejected?

• 2 month filibuster in 1934

• bill reintroduced in 1935 but failed to go to a vote due to another filibuster

why were anti-lynching bills still being defeated and overturned in 1937-38?

• USA facing another economic recession

• president faced backlash from southern democrats

• ongoing filibusters

• corrupt and racist southern democrat beliefs

why did southern democrats block roosevelt’s new deal policies?

• they didn’t agree in federal intervention in ‘state affairs’

• they wanted to maintain jim crow

when was the court packing plan created?

februrary 1937

what did the court packing plan say?

• add one new supreme court justice for every existing member over 70 → allowed to add up to 6 (total 15)

what was roosevelt’s aim when introducing the court packing plan?

to politicise the court in his favour by slowly adding more supreme court justices of his choosing

when was the conservative manifesto created?

december 1937

what did the conservative manifesto aim to do?

• limit high federal spending

• oppose any major social/economic reform

• limited federal power + independent supreme court

who was the conservative manifesto supported by?

a coalition of southern democrats and republicans

what did the political coalition between southern democrats and republicans ensure between 1937-41?

• ensured the radicalism of the early new deal did not continue

• ensured reforms of the new deal did not benefit BA

who had a bigger impact on the status of BA and why - eleanor roosevelt or southern democrats?

• eleanor roosevelt helped create publicity for the shortcomings of BA in society

• but ultimately southern democrats defeated any legislation that would actually enact change to BA status’

what was the first year that the democrats received the majority of BA votes?

1936

why did BA begin voting democrat in 1936?

• voting for roosevelt as a person, not democrats

• FDRs new deal legislation offered jobs and hope to many poor and unemployed BA

when from and to were the democrats the dominant political party in the USA?

1936-1970s