Episode 180 - An Entirely Different Deal

Peace In Their Time

One of the big criticisms of the New Deal, and one of the most valid, was the fact that it didn't do much of anything to try and tackle the plight of African-Americans. Sure, the relief efforts and public works projects were mostly made available to all Americans. But these efforts didn't reckon with the institutional discrimination of the country, nor the fact that they had toiled as second-class citizens for generations already, and therefore would have benefited enormously from reforms to address that. Those reforms were not forthcoming, and today we'll get into why, along with other ways African-Americans experienced the New Deal.

Bibliography for this episode:

1. Kennedy, David M. Freedom From Fear: The American People in Depression and War 1929-1945 Oxford University Press 1999
2. Hiltzik, Michael The New Deal: A Modern History Simon and Schuster 2011
3. Schlesinger Jr, Arthur M. The Age of Roosevelt Volume II: The Coming of the New Deal 1933-1935 First Mariner Books 2003
4. Katznelson, Ira Fear Itself: The New Deal and the Origins of Our Time W.W. Norton and Company, Inc 2013
5. Smith, Jason Scott A Concise History of the New Deal Cambridge University Press 2014
6. Engerman, Stanley L. and Robert E. Gallman The Cambridge Economic History of the United States, Volume III: The Twentieth Century Cambridge University Press 2000

Questions? Comments? Email me at [e-mail]