The Great Depression was an economic downfall of America which began in 1929 with the stock market crash, also known as Black Tuesday. On that Tuesday alone, the market lost 14 billion dollars. For about ten years, Americans lived through poverty and unemployment as they struggled to survive through harsh times. President Hoover was often harshly criticized for how he handled the situation; his approach was very "hands-off", meaning that he strongly believed the economy would fix itself without any government intervention.
Many factors made the Great Depression even worse. The Dust Bowl, a series of severe dust storms, destroyed crops and farms in many parts of the Great Plains. A severe drought also caused the agricultural industry to fail. Immigrants and people of color were especially affected, losing their jobs faster than others. Banking systems of the 1920s were weak and monitored; this would later cause bank failures and over 9,000 banks across the nation would close, causing customers to lose all of their money in the banks. At its worst, the unemployment rate reached 25%. Due to lack of funding, 3 million children were forced to leave schools because many had reduced hours or closed entirely.
President Roosevelt created the New Deal programs in order to help the failing economy and to create jobs for the unemployed Americans struggling to feed their families. The overall goal of the programs focused on the 3 R's: relief, recovery, and reform. Many programs created during the Great Depression still exist present-day, such as the Social Security act and the FIDC. Interestingly, the notorious Al Capone even opened his own soup kitchen to aid the poor during the Great Depression.
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