The New Deal Influence

Dear Students,

Access the discussion packet here: 

Remember, you need to answer at least two of the following questions, and then reply to at least three of your classmates responses.

1. Franklin D. Roosevelt greatly expanded the power of the federal government to fight the Great Depression. Do you think Roosevelts New Deal was effective? If so, why? If not, how could it have been more effective?
2. Conservatives vehemently disagreed with Roosevelts New Deal. Why? What was their reasoning, and how did they attack the New Deal? Do you find their arguments valid? Explain why or why not.
3. The New Deal left an uneven legacy in American historynot all groups of people were helped or considered equally. How did the New Deal affect the lives of women and African Americans? In what ways did the prevailing racial and gender beliefs of the time manifest in the New Deal?
4. Consider the article on the Green New Deal. Briefly explain the Green New Deal. How is Roosevelts New Deal influencing Alexandria Ocasio-Cortezs fight against climate change? What connection exists between conservative philosophies from the 1930s and the modern attacks against the Green New Deal?
5. The New Deal was one of the most important political turning points in twentieth century America. So, a philosophical question: Does a catastrophe the size of the Great Depression warrant an expansion of government powers? Or, were conservatives correct in stating that any expansion of government power is inherently negative?