Niwot, CO: University Press of Colorado, 1991. In 1932 he was appointed exhibitions director at the American Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City. The CWA became the largest employer in the nation's history. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc., 1976. Works Progress Administration 1935-1943 Luther Evans (19021981). A Renaissance in Harlem: Lost Essays of the WPA, by Ralph Ellison, Dorothy West, and Other Voices of a Generation. The Hungry Years: A Narrative History of the Great Depression in America. The Committee made much of the political messages in plays by the FTP and the art of the FAP. Millions of Americans attended free concerts and plays, learned to paint, and saw "professional" art. In 1933 they had set up the Public Works Art Project (PWAP), under the administration of the Treasury Department. I've lived in Berkeley, in the San Francisco Bay Area, since 1988, and have been puzzled for a long time by the steadily declining quality of life that's accompanied the domination o. It is generally agreed that there are from ten to twelve million unemployed in the country. The following quote is from a press conference in the summer of 1935 soon after the program had begun (as quoted in Charles, p. 131). American stage. Instead of providing money to sustain someone without a job, work relief programs provided a job, allowing the participant to earn money. The movement toward work relief programs that became the Works Progress Administration was most directly a result of the unemployment, poverty, and homelessness caused by the Great Depression. Apparently the American people are tougher than anyone had a right to hope What sort of people are "on" the WPA? The conservatives saw the appropriate role of the government as being limited and carefully defined. The message delivered to the New York state legislature asking for unemployment relief legislation was a signal of what would be coming to Congress two years later (as quoted in June Hopkins, p. 154). The Federal Arts Project, Federal Writers Project, and Federal Theater Projectall under WPA aegisemployed thousands of artists, writers, and actors in such cultural programs as the creation of art work for public buildings, the documentation of local life, and the organization of community theatres; thousands of artists, architects, construction workers, and educators found work in American museums, which flourished during the Great Depression. Williams was well noted for his never-ending efforts of bringing youth and minorities into the New Deal work relief projects. That group included renowned artists such as Mark Rothko, Willem de Kooning and Lee Krasner. The administrators of the WPA disqualified almost all of them. Many writers who were employed by the Federal Writers' Project would go on to become famous including Ralph Ellison, John Cheever, Conrad Aiken, Richard Wright, Saul Bellow, Studs Terkel, Dorothy West, and Zora Neale Hurston. This included the compilation of the Index of American Design that documented American art, painting, sculpture, and folk art. which of the following was a criticism of the Works Progress Administration (WPA)? Projects were specifically chosen so as not to compete with a private company's ability to get the job. The Work Projects Administration was originally named the Works Progress Administration when it was established as a national agency on May 6, 1935, by an executive order of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Worse, many felt that the art was "leftist" portraying subjects that depicted the poverty and harsh conditions of the United States. The WPA was just one of many Great Depression relief programs created. High school students were also eligible for part-time employment, since they often made a significant contribution to the family income. Fortune reported, as a result of a survey in 1937, that more than two thirds of the workers on relief had at some time held one job for more than five years. This would mean that starting with 2,200,000 Works Progress Administration workers in February, we should ordinarily expect a decline of about 340,000 workers, leaving 1,860,000 on Works Progress Administration projects during June. Regardless of these administrative problems, the WPA workers were highly productive. Corrections? More importantly, the Federal Theatre Project introduced thousands of Americans to theatre during a challenging time in America. The WPA Oklahoma Slave Narratives. With the audience beginning to line up outside the closed theater, an alternative theater 21 blocks away was found. All Rights Reserved. Because each style has its own formatting nuances that evolve over time and not all information is available for every reference entry or article, Encyclopedia.com cannot guarantee each citation it generates. Watkins, T.H. When business is recovering, cases of local scarcity of certain kinds of labor are bound to occur from time to time. Conservatives felt that it would undermine the free enterprise system. Hood east of Portland, Oregon. Historic Events for Students: The Great Depression. The smallest of the WPA projects, the HRS was directed by Luther Evans and supervised by noted bibliographer Douglas McMurtrie. Advancement in such a system is based on performance, as measured through examination or . The New Deal, including the WPA, resonated throughout U.S. society ever since the Great Depression. It was these programs that were most innovative, most controversial, and of most enduring interest in American history. Injury or death often meant the entire family faced imminent poverty and homelessness. . With this amount it would be possible to employ 2,200,000 on Works Progress Administration projects in February; 2,150,000 in March; 2,000,000 in April; 1,800,000 in May; and 1,600,000 in June. The Federal Theatre Project (FTP) was the most controversial of the Federal One projects. Some Americans felt that these people were simply avoiding getting a "real job.". The Federal Theatre Project was disbanded immediately. Much of the "Art for the Millions" was designed to show normal people in normal activities. Apparently the people who have borne the burnt of the long depression have kept the desire to work to get back on their feet. But as the House Subcommittee on Un-American Activities began to investigate the WPA and ultimately disband the FTP, the concern of government-sponsored art was raised anew. We are just agents of America, doing a job, and in a crisis like thisbecause when we have ten or eleven million people out of work don't let anybody tell you this isn't still a crisiswe have been given the greatest opportunity to serve not only the people but the nation, that we will every have again in our lives. In addition many people had a difficult time seeing singing and dancing as a real job. President Franklin D. Roosevelt created the WPA with an executive order on May 6, 1935. The WPA had had from two to three million on its rolls. The debate over the worthiness of spending public funds on work relief was non-ending. Many found the situation extremely disillusioning, though most participants found the centers themselves to be a good experience. 170171). He represents millions of employable men and women, white-collar workers and laborers, skilled mechanics, scientists, experienced and inexperienced workers, who, having lost their jobs and exhausted their private resources, have needed employment on WPA projects to tide them over a desperate period . Many conservatives also felt that the WPA, and in particular Federal One, was promoting liberal or even communist views. London and New York: Blackwell Publishers, 1999. Meritocracy (merit, from Latin mere, and -cracy, from Ancient Greek kratos 'strength, power') is the notion of a political system in which economic goods or political power are vested in individual people based on talent, effort, and achievement, rather than wealth or social class. The Lasting Values of the WPA: The Social Welfare History Project, Virginia Commonwealth University Libraries. Even people who supported the idea of the arts and saw work in the arts as real work raised concerns about government-sponsored art. school. wages, the Roosevelt Administration was in fact delaying recovery. Charles, Searle F. Minister of Relief: Harry Hopkins and the Depression. The Works Progress Administration (WPA) was a program created by then-President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1935 to boost employment and the purchasing power of cash-strapped Americans. Is it true, as you so often hear, that people on relief acquire the habit of living at ease and thenceforth refuse to go to work? A New Deal for the Arts. However, the Works Progress Administration's was highly criticized for its creation of artistic and infrastructure jobs because people felt the program gave too much power to the . "Admit you are powerless before the word," said Francine Prose, and I've read works-in-progress that has taken my breath away, either in total, or a paragraph, or a scene, or even simply one perfectly-chosen word, and sometimes these moments come from the student you'd least expect to . America had emerged from World War I (19141918) with strength and a world mission. He was later to serve as librarian of Congress and director general of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). The WPA shut down in June of 1943. The WPA was designed to provide relief for the unemployed by providing jobs and income for millions of Americans. Many worked long hours in terrible surroundings, where poor equipment, increased production requirements, and poor safety measures meant frequent injury and death. Only three months earlier an historical demonstration took place as the poor marched on Washington, DC, in the National Hunger March. It provided employment as a way to help Americans (rather than offering direct payments). Everyone could enjoy opera and vaudeville; fiddle playing and contemporary art. If the government kept the workers barely employed on barely sustainable wages they might be prevented from rebellion. On September 28, 1937, President Franklin Roosevelt described his perspective of WPA projects at Timberline Lodge on the upper slopes Mt. Historic Events for Students: The Great Depression. Many actors, directors, and producers who were employed by the Federal Theatre Project would go on to become famous including, Orson Welles, Arthur Miller, John Huston, Joseph Cotton, E.G. largely to take over some responsibilities of the FERA, the PWA, and the CWA. Oral histories are the memories of a time or event, told in the individual's voice. The explosion in art during the Great Depression has been compared to a similar explosion during the Renaissance in Europe that coincidentally was also supported by government funds. The . Director of the Historical Records Survey of the WPA, Evans, a Southerner from Alabama, was known for his efforts to promote racial equality within the program. It also took an innovative approach to including cultural expression into its employment program. A major concern regarding "the dole" in the 1930s was the impact on the self-esteem of the recipients. Hiller, Megan (Ed.). President Roosevelt's goal was to provide employment to individuals currently on direct relief. Historic Events for Students: The Great Depression. The unemployment, while upsetting, was part of a "natural" cycle that would inevitably improve. A play depicting the struggles of a family in a contemporary New York City tenement could be just as meaningful and just as much art as a play written three hundred years earlier. 2023, A&E Television Networks, LLC. Compare the arguments in the 1930s and in the 1990s regarding welfare and self-esteem. In early 1933 Franklin Delano Roosevelt became President of the United States. Most of the student workers worked out of their homes, but rural youth were moved to residential centers and trained in masonry, welding, baking, barbering, carpentry, and plumbing. YOUTH ADMINISTRATION, NATIONAL (NYA) was established by executive order on 26 June 1935 as a division of the Works Progress Administration (WPA). Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press, 1963. Fewer Americans were self-employed and more worked in factories. Many artists employed by the Federal Art Project would later become famous. The idea of unionizing American workers was gaining acceptance in some areas. As part of the New Deal, the WPA program was developed in response to the horrible unemployment and destitution of the time, which affected almost every aspect of society. Aubrey Williams (18901965). For example one Narrative profiles James Green, a half Native American, half black American who was born into slavery, freed, and then kidnapped and sold back into slavery in Texas. The unemployment rate in 1935 was at a staggering 20 percent. However, the date of retrieval is often important. New York City: De Capo Press, 1974. The idea that the government would pay people to do it seemed absurd. By early 1933, 25 percent of the workforce was unemployed amounting to over 12 million people. The Narratives document their experiences as slaves, their recollections of the stories about their history as told to them by their ancestors, and their memories of newly won freedom. During the 1920s and 1930s, many Americans and, in fact, people all over the world had begun to advocate for more accessible culture. Women engaged in sewing projects made up about seven percent of the national WPA workforce. As she was quoting Marlowe, one of the congressmen interrupted her to ask who Marlowe was and whether he was a Communist. PWAP was not designed strictly as a work relief project. PWAP and later Federal One combined the economic desire to provide assistance, a renewed interest in democracy, and an interest in the development and exploration of American culture. The Federal Theatre in New York included the Living Newspapers, the Popular Price Theatre, an Experimental Theatre, a Negro Theatre, and a Tryout Theatre. FERA was designed after the Temporary Emergency Relief Administration that Roosevelt had set up in New York when he was governor. The NYA had a better record than many federal agencies of the time in providing assistance to black American students. Perceptions about public workers that were predominately forged in the work relief programs of the 1930s remain today. Harry Hopkins (18901946). What about those who are not on the WPA or on direct relief? The Federal Music and Theatre projects also supported Black musicians and actors. Roosevelt had wrestled with poverty and joblessness as governor of New York, implementing a number of innovative programs that would become models for future federal programs. Hopkins was one of Franklin Delano Roosevelt's closest advisors. I look forward to the day when many, many people from this region of the Nation are going to come here for skiing and tobogganing and various other forms of winter sports. It put four million people to work within four weeks. The production had been cancelled and the unions had decreed that no actor could appear on stage. At the final production of the long-running Pinocchio in New York the cast and crew changed the ending: Pinocchio died and his casket read: "Born December 23, 1938; Killed by Act of Congress, June 30, 1939.". A children's play about beavers fighting the human destroyer of their dam was considered to support workers rising up against business owners. During the 1920s, wealth in the United States became increasingly concentrated in a few individuals, following a trend begun during the early industrialization of the country. The New Deal's WPA was most importantly a work relief program. Beyond the criticism of specific groups, many people raised concerns about the effectiveness of the program. Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press, 1996. Called the American Guide Series, many of the volumes are available in re-prints, and remained a valuable guide to important sites within the United States decades later. The Slave Narratives include the transcripts of interviews with almost 2,300 Americans who were once slaves. 2023
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