The America's Great Depression

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             The economic issue of the depression was the primary cause, but the environmental issue was just harsh to the mid western farmers. "The Day the dirt started to blow I was outside playing, I seen this huge black cloud blowing towards me. I ran for the house and as I closed the door behind me It was like someone had turned the lights off" (Schiffner, Frances). The clouds appeared on the horizons with a thunderous roar. Men, women and children stayed in their houses and tied handkerchiefs over their noses and mouths. The dust bowl had arrived. "The Dust Bowl was cased by two main problems. Over grazing of the lands, or the extensive plowing up of the land. .

             Many Farmers lost their land. "Farmers borrowed money in the spring to buy seed and supplies. When the harvests came, they paid back their loans. If the harvest was bad, they remained in debt" (Fremon 71). In the thirties the bad harvests outweighed the good. Farmers had no control over the prices they received for their products. They always seemed to produce more than was needed, therefore prices were always low. When debts couldn't be paid bankers started foreclosing. Some of the farmers stayed on as share croppers, others were evicted and forced to move to the city and went on relief. Larger farmers who could afford expensive machinery fared the best. What took seven men to do their equipment could do with only one. The larger farmers bought up land and livestock. .

             Many of the laws that were passed to get out of the depression still exist today. Many of these laws came out of Roosevelt's New Deal. One of the largest laws that came out of the new deal was the Social Security act. Roosevelt argued that it was immoral not to have benefits for the retired, disabled, or unemployed. The Social Security Act was passed into law in 1935. The Act was largely opposed by congress, but widely accepted by the voters. .

             Something else that the Unites states has done to prevent Another depression from happening again is the creation of the FDIC.

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