American History/1930:

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, Top; A bankrupt• investor tries

to sell his luxury car for $100after the stock market crashin October. Below. A headlineabout the crash that appearsin Variety, an entertainmentnewspaper, will become famous. The Great

How a child of immigrants coped withhunger and uncertainty in the 1930s

Words to Know

depressicîtor f(n}: a period ofdrastic decline in an economy,marked especially by risinglevaiAA&unemployment.

/ n j : person currentlyholding a political office.

1 2 JÜNI0RSCH0USTIC/MAY11, 2009

he era can besummed up intwo words: breadlines and debt. Forthe people who

lived through it, the GreatDepression was a time ofdevastation and uncer-tainty. After the stock market crashedin October 1929, millions of Ameri-cans lost their jobs and homes. By1932, at the height of the Depression,the unemployment rate had reachednearly 25 percent.

That year, Eleanor Kadis* was 12years old and living with her family inWorcester, Massachusetts. Her parentshad emigrated from Lithuania when

they were in their teens."My father was a realtor,

in a town that wasindustrial," Eleanor recalls."•[After the stock marketcrashl everything stoppedworking. People didn't paytheir rent, so he couldn't

keep up financially. We lost ourhome, and he lost properties that hehad invested in."

The family ended up "in a muchlesser house," Eleanor says, "in aneighborhood that I hated."

Eleanor's mother did everythingshe could to help feed and clothe herfour children. "I remember that mymother bought a coat for herself,"

*Eleanor Kadis is the author's mother.

51s p.

n

1933:President FranklinD. Rooseveltdelivers his first"Fireside Chat" inWashington, D.C.

1932:Hundreds of menline up in the coldin New York Cityfor a free meal.

1934:The game ofMonopoly appearsin stores.

Á Q Q C , President• Roosevelt

signs the Social Securitybill at the White House.

DepressionEleanor tells 3S. "After she wore it fora while, she refashioned it for myolder sister, and she wore it. In theend, my mother turned the coatinside out and stitched it again sothat 1 could wear it."

Many of the family's meats con-sisted of potato pancakes and frenchfries because potatoes were cheapand filling. A small garden providedfruits and vegetables. But still therewas not enough.

One day in 1932, Eleanor was sentto the local supermarket to collectfood for the family—butter, flour, andbread. As she stood in the long line,holding the coupon that her motherhad given her, she started to cry.

"I knew how proud my parentswere," she says. "Taking a handoutwas the last thing they wanted to do."

"Fear ItseirLike countless children across the

United States, Eleanor feared thatthings would get worse.

"I was worried about my parents,"she says. "One time, some officialcame around to collect a tax, It wasabout $2. He was so overbearing,and 1 was scared to death that myfather would be arrested for the $2.He wasn't, but you know how a kidthinks. It was a very scary time."

In cities and towns throughout thecountry, the outlook was increasinglybleak. Factories and mills were shut-ting down. Many banks had closedtheir doors, and farmers were unableto sell their produce. As a result,more and more people were standingin breadlines, hungry and homeless.

Things had to get better. So said

Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Demo-cratic candidate for President in1932. Roosevelt, then the Governorof New York, ran against the Repub-lican incumbent, Herbert Hoover,whose response to the economicdownturn was considered woefullyinadequate by many people.

After a landslide victory, Roosevelttook office in March 1933. His Inaugu-ral Address, which was broadcast onradio, gripped the nation. Rooseveltreminded Americans that the countryhad seen tough limes before and hadalways risen to the challenge.

"The only thing we have to fear isfear itself," the new President said,"nameless, unreasoning, unjustifiedterror, which paralyzes needed effortsto convert retreat into advance. Inevery dark hour of our national life a

JUNIOR SCHOLASTIC/MAY 11, 2009 1 3

American Historyy

1 • This migrant farm-'• worker in California

is the mother of seven childrenwhom she is unable to feed.

1939:Women work at acanning factory,as part oftheWorks ProgressAdministration, aNew Deal program.

m December?bombing of Pearl Harborby the Japanese drawsthe U.S. into Worfd War II.

WORKPROGRAM

WPA

leadership of frankness and vigor hasmet with that understanding and sup-port of the people themselves."

In his first 100 days in office,Roosevelt sent 15 major bills throughCongress. They included:• the Glass-Steagall Banking Act,which protected investors and gavethe Federal Reserve additional powerto regulate loans made by banks;

• the Civilian Conservation Corps,which put young men to work onsuch projects as planting trees andbuilding dams;• the Federal Emergency ReliefAdministration, which providedstates with funds for the needy; and• the Public Works Administration,which led to the building and restora-tion of schools, courthouses, bridges,and other projects.

Rooseveh"s economic recoveryprograms, instituted between 1933and 1938, were known collectively asthe New Deal.

Some New Deal programs weresuccessful. The Works ProgressAdministration (WPA), for instance.

put people to work building high-ways, streets, parks, and other vitalinfrastructure. Later renamed theWorks Projects Administration, italso brought meaningful assignmentsto artists, actors, and writers.

Other programs didn't fare aswell. But Roosevelt's actions and hisradio broadcasts, known as "FiresideChats," gave people hope and helpedthem to survive.

Eleanor Kadis's father was able toget a job building roads. He alsoopened a pool hall, where Eleanorsold fudge. But the money he earnedwas still not enough to support hisfamily, and, after high school, Elea-nor had to go to work.

"A [clericall job came up at a hos-pital," she recalls, "and it paid $12 aweek. Someone ahead of me got thejob, and I was so disappointed. Thenanother job came up at City Hall for$18 a week, and 1 got it. It was like agold mine!"

Her one regret: "1 never could go tocollege, and I had desperately wantedto go. " In every city in which she

worked, from Boston and New Yorkto Washington, D.C, she took coursesat the local college or university.

"Invisible Scars"By 1939, the worst of the Depres-

sion years were over. But it was notuntil the U.S. entered World War II,in 1941, that the nation's economyreally began to recover.

For children like Eleanor whocame of age during the Depression,"invisible scars" remained. "Eversince then," she says, "I've been verymindful that things can changequickly, without warning, just liketoday." Still, tbe lessons she learnedproved just as valuable.

"I learned not to waste food, notto be extravagant about materialthings, and to conserve our naturalresources." says Eleanor, now 89."My entire life, I was not in a posi-tion to be wasteful with myresources, and 1 think I've been justas happy, perhaps more so, than peo-ple who are surrounded by luxury."

—Suzanne McCabe

1 4 JUNI0RSCH0LASTIC/MAY11.2009