Hard Times in the Great Depression

Before the Great Depression, many were investing in stocks and businesses, but few knew that the stock market was soon to crash. Many that were wealthy were investing in businesses and receiving part of the profit because they invested. Many though failed to pull out of the investment and take their money out of banks. When the stock market crashed and millions of businesses became bankrupt, millions of people lost the money they had with a bank or had invested in a stock or business. Those who took out their money were safe and would last through the depression.

The Great Depression was a devastating time for almost everyone. Some families lived off barely any money, and some families sunk so low that they were ashamed to be of the same economic class as black Americans. In Clifford Burke, I read how different social classes were affected by the depression. Blacks didn't feel an impact because they were "born in depression" (105). They were always struggling to be accepted and for money, so the depression made them work just a little harder. With the depression, many families tore apart. The wealthy that became poor were shamefully kicked out of their homes because they were not making big bucks. However the common man who sunk to a black man's status came home to a family and wife that accepted his hard work. White men were the superior figure for so long, that it was hard to accept that some were as poor as a black man.

The recession we are currently in does not seem as bad as the Great Depression. I am so grateful that my family is able to still live a happy life in this recession. I'm not saying that we don't feel the recession, it is just that it is not as bad as some of the experiences I've read about. Both my parents are working, raising two children, and paying for college tuition at the same time. My dad's business is struggling and not doing as well as other years, but that is expected to happen to all businesses in recession. With this recession our families expenses have been cut down; my family has become smart spenders and savers. We only spend it when necessary. I hope this recession does not become nearly as bad as the Great Depression.