The Beginning of the Welfare State

The Beginning of the Welfare State

Harrisburg Area Community College

The Beginning of the Welfare State

A welfare state is a political structure built on the idea the government is responsible for the security of its citizens by guaranteeing that a minimum standard of living is within reach for all. This obligation is comprised of free education, unemployment, medical care, disability insurance, income supplements and pensions.

The New Deal

The Great Depression began in October of 1929. The stock market crashed (after a steady increase lasting ten years) generating this country's most severe economic disaster ever witnessed by its people. Investors lost everything, banks collapsed, the country's money supply declined and businesses went bankrupt and fired employees in droves. Concurrently, President Herbert Hoover appealed for patience, believing this to be a passing phase. After three years, the people of this great nation saw no end to the Great Depression. Assurances from President Hoover however, had no effect; the situation became desperate for millions of Americans. President Hoover had no real plan to end the Great Depression.

When Franklin Roosevelt announced his intentions to be the next president, he provided people with hope. Roosevelt promised a "new deal" for the United States, pledging to look after the forgotten people. Finally, there was a candidate promising real help. Roosevelt had a plan to end the Great Depression (Fitzgerald, 2007). When President Roosevelt entered the White House in 1933, he began the arduous task of stabilizing the economy, produce employment and grant reprieve to those who are suffering. For the next eight years, the government established a succession of programs known as the New Deal. Roosevelt's intention was to reestablish the prosperity and the self-respect to the citizens of his beloved country.

The First One Hundred Days

Roosevelt's mission to put an end to the Great...