The New Deal relieved the suffering of millions of Americans by the use of Government funded relief to prevent homelessness and starvation. It did this through the FERA where $500 million was given to homeless, penniless and starving Americans. The HOLC loaned money to over 1 million people to prevent them losing their homes and the FCA prevented 1/5th of farmers to prevent them losing their farms. However these schemes were not sustainable as taxpayer money had to be continually pumped in and they couldn’t help everybody.
The New Deal extended the rights of workers and established Trade Unions throughout America. The NRA increased workers wages, gave them better working conditions and shorter hours and the Wagner act supported unions and prevented employers sacking union members. Although by the end of the 1930’s there were over 7 million members and unions had been established in most industries, however the NRA interfered in relations between workers and employers and the regulations were voluntary and many employers refused to recognise worker’s rights and unions. As a result there was a huge growth in labour unrest and in the mid 1930’s there was a wave of violent conflicts between strikers and the national guardsmen.
The New Deal was also only partially successful as although it rescued the banking system and saved many businesses from collapse as in 1933 business failure, 150 (per 10,000 businesses) and bank failure of nearly 4000 fell to only 50 and almost 0 respectively in 1934. The New Deal did not bring economic recovery and it was only after 1939 when the Second World War started and in 1941 when USA became fully involved that demand for American manufactured goods and food increased rapidly and the economy was lifted out of depression. In 1938 there was still 11 million unemployed (before the depression there were approximately 2 million), whereas between 1939 and 1942 unemployment fell from 9.5 million to 3 million people. America’s GNP (Gross National Product) only reached pre Wall Street Crash levels after 1939, at 90 billion dollars when it had previously dipped to 85 billion in 1938.
The New Deal restored hope to millions of Americans by providing them with a job or saving their home. However it did not benefit blacks as African Americans were left as second class citizens who still feared racism and discrimination. Blacks were placed in segregated CCC camps and weren’t allowed to live in certain places in the Tennessee Valley. In 1935 30% of African Americans lived on relief as they received few or menial jobs and in 1940 1 in 20 black people had a desk job compared to 1 in 3 white people. Although they improved the situation of native American Indians, the New Deal did very little to improve the position of women in American society as only 8000 women were included in the CCC programme and the average wage of a woman was half of a man’s in 1937.
In conclusion although the New Deal vastly benefited America not only on a temporary scale but a permanent one as well, the economy did not fully recover until after 1939 and the New Deal did nothing to help African Americans and very little to improve the status of women.