Direct Relief in Modern Times: A Complete Reversal of American Ideal

The hard-working yeoman farmer used to embody the peak of prideful self-sufficiency that was hailed as inherently American. Reaping the fruits of one’s labor and cultivating a small estate was the dream of anyone who wished to consider themselves an accomplished citizen of the sapling nation that was the United States. The notion of freedom and citizenship would eventually evolve to cover a much wider demographic and take on new meanings entirely, but the idea of the self-made man lingered in American culture long after the autarkic agriculturalist lifestyle lost its overwhelming appeal. In fact, the idea of the self-made man would prove time and time again to appeal to voters seeking a candidate from among the common people and ultimately decide the outcome of presidential elections (for example, the rather backwards election of President Harrison in 1840 over President Van Buren). Accompanying the self-reliant American nature was a resistance to direct relief from the Federal Government, that is, providing funds and goods to individuals or industries in times of economic hardship. However, by the time of the Great Depression, the cry for federal aid became so intense that the current administration (President Hoover, 1929-1933) had little choice but to enact policies by which to loan money directly to state and local governments, as well as larger businesses like the railroads via the Reconstruction Finance Corporation. These efforts represent some of the first to ever offer direct relief from the US government and they established precedents that paved the road for direct relief under the New Deal of President Roosevelt. The practice of providing funds/resources to businesses, banks, and families has become commonplace in American society, despite a history of self-sufficiency.
It was recently estimated that one in every eight American adults (and one in four children) were the recipients of food stamps provided as direct government aid to those struggling with basic needs. In fact, a New York Times article recently commented that the use of food stamps is becoming, “nearly as ordinary as the groceries they buy.” The economy has taken a large plummet in recent years, and federal food stamps are now supporting a record 36 million people. Among these people are the newly unemployed, chronically poor, single mothers, and desperate married couples. The demographics are so large in fact, that people are beginning to take offense to the word welfare. There is even a movement toward revising the term to “nutritional aid.” That there is a stigma surrounding the term welfare provides evidence for two things: even today there is an inherent reluctance to depart from the ideal of the self-made American and direct relief is here to stay despite the deeply rooted tradition of self-reliance dating back to the early settlers of the New World.
References
DeParle, Jason, and Robert Gebeloff. "Food Stamp Use Soars, and Stigma Fades." The New York Times 29 Nov. 2009, New York ed.: A1. Web. 29 Nov. 2009. .