Great Depression Essay
Great Depression Essay
Katie Bieber “...the American dream turned into a nightmare as Wall Street’s Stock Market Boom turned into The Crash,” writes Robert Goldston. The world that was too good to be true was exactly that in the 1920’s, false visions of fortunes that could disappear into thin air when looked at too long. Which is precisely what happened in 1929, when the Stock Market collapsed. Political, economic, and social institutions spiraled downwards. The people in the United States who were once richer than they could imagine now faced numerous problems they hadn’t encountered before, that the government, groups, and individuals fought to fix in various ways. When Herbert Hoover was elected to office in 1929, he had hope for the country. He believed eternal prosperity was easily obtainable, and intended to make it a reality. Unfortunately for him, his campaign promise of "a chicken for every pot" couldn't have been more ironic. As rich as the country was in The Boom, it was equally as poor after The Crash. The same banks that had once had an unlimited supply of loans were now closing their doors due to bankruptcy, completely drained of all money. Families lost entire life savings overnight. Food and shelter were scarce and as a result, families were forced to eat like animals, scavenging through city dumps and restaurant garbage cans. Many had to give up life as they knew it, drifting like smoke from town to town. The lingering scent of poverty and despair traveled with them, staining their skin as well as their futures. “Twenty-five or thirty [people] would be out on the side of the rail, white and colored. They didn’t have no mothers or sisters, they didn’t have no home, they were dirty, they had overalls on, they didn’t have no food, they didn’t have anything.” This is how Lois Banks describes life on the rails in an interview, 1970. Hope was running out as fast as money, and faces were as long as the lines for banks and “kitchens” as seen in
Katie Bieber “...the American dream turned into a nightmare as Wall Street’s Stock Market Boom turned into The Crash,” writes Robert Goldston. The world that was too good to be true was exactly that in the 1920’s, false visions of fortunes that could disappear into thin air when looked at too long. Which is precisely what happened in 1929, when the Stock Market collapsed. Political, economic, and social institutions spiraled downwards. The people in the United States who were once richer than they could imagine now faced numerous problems they hadn’t encountered before, that the government, groups, and individuals fought to fix in various ways. When Herbert Hoover was elected to office in 1929, he had hope for the country. He believed eternal prosperity was easily obtainable, and intended to make it a reality. Unfortunately for him, his campaign promise of "a chicken for every pot" couldn't have been more ironic. As rich as the country was in The Boom, it was equally as poor after The Crash. The same banks that had once had an unlimited supply of loans were now closing their doors due to bankruptcy, completely drained of all money. Families lost entire life savings overnight. Food and shelter were scarce and as a result, families were forced to eat like animals, scavenging through city dumps and restaurant garbage cans. Many had to give up life as they knew it, drifting like smoke from town to town. The lingering scent of poverty and despair traveled with them, staining their skin as well as their futures. “Twenty-five or thirty [people] would be out on the side of the rail, white and colored. They didn’t have no mothers or sisters, they didn’t have no home, they were dirty, they had overalls on, they didn’t have no food, they didn’t have anything.” This is how Lois Banks describes life on the rails in an interview, 1970. Hope was running out as fast as money, and faces were as long as the lines for banks and “kitchens” as seen in