Question

How did the New Deal affect women?

Answer 1

Hint: The New Deal was a domestic program of American President Franklin Roosevelt’s administration between 1933 and 1939. It seeked to bring immediate economic relief in addition to the reforms in industry, agriculture, finance, waterpower, labour, and housing which would aim at increasing the scope of the federal government as well.

Complete answer:
The New Deal had both positive and negative consequences. When it came to women, it gave a greater scope to women to participate in important positions. For example, Frances Perkins became the U.S. Secretary of Labor and the first woman to be appointed to a cabinet-level position which was a big feat for women around that time.
Women were also promoted to leadership roles which promoted national recovery, administering relief programs, nation’s everyday activities and interests of women. By the end of the following decade, fifty-five women held key positions in government.

The WPA (1935-1943) brought greater work-relief opportunities for women. The numbers of women employed frequently exceeded 300,000 and were able to reach 409,954 in September 1938. Sewing projects were also able to employ many women, sometimes exceeding the numbers of men. They were also largely responsible for the WPA’s school lunch program. They were able to provide nutritional 1.2 billion lunches. WPA women also involved themselves in a diverse range of fields such as archaeology, historic preservation, scientific research, gardening, canning, toy repair, nursery schools, healthcare, furniture repair, libraries, teaching, recreational leadership etc.
To conclude, the New Deal provided a range of opportunities to women to forge into the well deserved areas of leadership and tap in the best use of their skills and talents. It could be classified as a revolutionary era.

Note: Due to gendered notions existing in the American society at the time, employment of women in work-relief programs could rarely equate to that of men. In fact, there were no women present in the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). However, the women who weren’t able to secure employment through the New Deal found assistance work in the Federal Surplus Commodities Corporation and the Food Stamp program.