In his article “‘Work for others but none for us’: the economic and environmental inequalities of New Deal Relief” history professor Neil Maher examines both the social and environmental aspects of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) used during the New Deal under FDR. I found reading this piece of literature incredibly interesting because it is truly the first time I have been exposed to an environmental perspective on history: that is, how mankind’s relationship to the environment has shaped historical developments. In addition, Maher ties his analysis of the environment to socioeconomic points to demonstrate how the CCC was not quite as effective at combatting the Great Depression as one might expect.
The CCC was established by FDR early, during the first hundred days of his office, with the intent of putting young American labor to use. In doing this, FDR aimed to both give economic relief for American families and preserve the environment, which, unfortunately, has been overlooked in most New Deal literature. Communities across the nation, such as though living near Bear Mountain State Park in New York, which Maher uses in his argument, came to accept CCC individuals and camps for socioeconomic ties. As such, the environmental preservation work done by these groups received socioeconomic legitimization, at least initially. By stating this explicitly, Maher is able to articulate the complex level of interaction that potentially exists between environmental, economic, and social history, and the need for historians to take a closer look at our interpretations of these perspectives.
The environmental impact of the CCC was certainly positive: new parks were created, infected forests were replaced, and areas of potential fires were augmented. However, the CCC had, as Maher states, a much more complicated and at times negative impact on local communities, much the opposite of what FDR intended. The CCC was actually unable to provide a significant number of local individuals with paid labor due to a myriad of organizational difficulties: for example, the CCC required applicants to be entirely jobless, male, or even married. As such, groups such as women and married individuals could only rely on CCC aid through their sons, who had to fit the requirements outlined above and be between the ages of eighteen to twenty three. This had an unintended backfiring affect on many families who needed their sons to stay at home and work farms or shops during troubling times. Americans often found themselves between a rock and a hard place in spite of the CCC. The number of local individuals serving in respective CCC camps dropped precipitously as time wore on.
The CCC failed to support the livelihood of many labourers and poorer American residents. On the other hand, its presence helped both middle and upper class Americans immensely, who had control over what was left of economic markets and sectors. These individuals, often merchants or corporate persons, administered food and clothing to CCC workers, thus establishing a flow of goods and services between their businesses and the CCC but leaving the community at large out of the loop. The economic relationship between these parties did result in an injection of dollars into local economies, but this generated wealth failed to trickle down to working class individuals; businesses refrained from hiring during the Depression.
The failure of the CCC to help lower class individuals and ironic elevation of middle and upper classes caused FDR’s New Deal policies to both draw heavy criticism and great appraisal from respective groups. Regardless, the CCC aided in creating a new American perspective on government: that the federal system ought to provide for ordinary Americans on a more consistent basis. Middle and upper class Americans had tasted this delight, and lower class citizens continued asking for it. As such, the relation between environmental and socioeconomic history and the CCC draws upon aspects of the Gilded Age cultural clash I identified and new perspectives on the role of political powers in American life, connecting the two themes and time periods to one another.
An American Inquiry 