Asked by Christen Estep on May 10, 2024
Verified
Why did a stigma emerge around public assistance during the New Deal years?
A) Only a very few Americans actually needed government assistance during the Great Depression.
B) Black workers were relegated to the least generous assistance programs, with discriminatory eligibility standards administered by states.
C) New Deal work programs helped restore economic prosperity relatively quickly, leaving only the least qualified long-term unemployed behind.
D) By the middle of the 1930s, more and more Americans came to associate New Deal assistance programs with similar government help offered in Nazi Germany.
E) Despite his successes, Roosevelt remained deeply unpopular with Americans, who hated themselves for depending on his programs.
Public Assistance
Government programs designed to provide financial aid to individuals or families in need, often targeting the poor, elderly, disabled, and unemployed.
New Deal
An assortment of programs, infrastructure projects, economic reforms, and policies put into action by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the 1930s in the United States, designed to facilitate recovery from the Great Depression.
Discriminatory Eligibility
Criteria or policies that unfairly exclude certain individuals or groups from qualifying for services, rights, or positions based on prejudiced distinctions.
- Scrutinize the hurdles and boundaries of the New Deal in tackling social and economic inequalities.
Verified Answer
LP
Lydia PhelpsMay 11, 2024
Final Answer :
B
Explanation :
The stigma around public assistance during the New Deal years partly stemmed from racial discrimination within the programs. Black workers often received less generous assistance and faced discriminatory eligibility standards, which contributed to a broader stigma around these programs.
Learning Objectives
- Scrutinize the hurdles and boundaries of the New Deal in tackling social and economic inequalities.