Primary Source Documents

Document A: FDR (Modified)
President Franklin D. Roosevelt gave this speech on August 14, 1935

when he signed the Social Security Act.
Today a long-held hope is largely fulfilled. The civilization of the past 100
years, with its startling industrial changes, has made life insecure. Young
people have come to wonder what would happen to them in old age. The
man with a job has wondered how long the job would last.
This social security measure gives some protection to 30 million of our

citizens who will receive direct benefits through unemployment
compensation, through old-age pensions, and through increased
services for the protection of children and the prevention of ill health.
We can never insure 100 percent of the population against 100 percent of
the ups and downs of life, but we have tried to pass a law which will give
some protection to the average citizen and to his family against the loss of
a job and against poverty-ridden old age.
This law, too, represents a cornerstone in a structure intended to lessen

the force of possible future depressions. It will act as a protection to future
Administrations against the necessity of going deeply into debt to help the
needy. It is, in short, a law that will take care of human needs and at the
same time provide the United States a sound economic structure.
Vocabulary
Pension: a regular payment made to someone in retirement from a fund that they or
their employer has contributed to throughout their working life
Cornerstone: a stone that lies at the foundation of a building
Source: August 14, 1935, excerpt from President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s

speech, Washington, D.C.
Social Security
Document B: NAACP (Modified)
President Roosevelt sent his Social Security bill, named the “Economic
Security Act,” to Congress in January 1935. Congress held committee
hearings on the bill. Charles H. Houston, a representative of the National
Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), a group
dedicated to advancing the rights of African Americans, testified before
Congress about how the bill excluded certain groups of people.
Mr. Houston: The point that I am making is that in order for a person to
qualify for Social Security, taxes must be paid on behalf of this person
before he turns 60.
Now, for the benefit of Negroes, I want to ask, who would be left out by
that rule?
First, and very serious, Negro sharecroppers and cash tenants would be
left out. We all know that the Negro sharecropper and the Negro cash
farm tenant are at the bottom of the economic scale. He is not employed.
There is no relation of master and servant by which he gets wages on
which a tax could be collected. Therefore this population is left out from
the old-age annuity, and that represents approximately 490,000 Negroes.
Next, domestic servants are excluded from the act because the system of
employing domestic servants is so loose.
In addition to that, this old-age annuity does not provide for unemployed
persons. I do not need to argue to the committee that Negroes have
suffered from unemployment more than any other class of the community.
Vocabulary
Annuity: fixed amount of money paid to someone each year
Source: Excerpt from the testimony of Charles H. Houston, representing

the NAACP, to the House Ways and Means Committee on the Economic
Security bill, February 1, 1935. Washington, D.C.
Social Security
Document C: Stealing (Modified)
Americans sent thousands of letters to the White House during FDR’s

presidency and many were addressed to Eleanor Roosevelt, the First
Lady. On average, more than 5,000 letters arrived daily. This letter refers
to the “forgotten man,” the title of a radio address that FDR gave on April
17, 1932. The “forgotten man” became a phrase adopted by many
Americans.
no address
Jan 18, 1937
Dear Mrs. Roosevelt,

I was simply astounded to think that anyone could be nitwit enough to
wish to be included in the so-called social security act if they could
possibly avoid it. Call it by any name you wish, but it is, in my opinion (and
that of many people I know), nothing but downright stealing.
Personally, I had my savings invested so that I would have enough

money for old age. Now thanks to the President, I cannot be sure of
anything, being a stockholder. After business has survived his merciless
attacks (if it does), insurance will probably be no good either.
Believe me, the only thing we want from the president is for him to
balance the budget and reduce taxes.
I am not an “economic royalist,” just an ordinary white-collar worker at

$1600 per year. Please show this to the president and ask him to
remember the wishes of the forgotten man, that is, the one who dared to
vote against him. We expect to be tramped on but we do wish the
stepping would be a little less hard.
Security at the price of freedom is never desired by intelligent people.
M.A. [female]
Source: Excerpt from a letter sent to Eleanor Roosevelt by an anonymous

woman, January 18, 1937.
Social Security
Guiding Questions Name__________
Document A: FDR
1. Sourcing Who gave this speech and when? Who is the intended audience? How might
that influence the content and tone of the speech?
2. Close Reading What four programs are included in the Social Security bill? How does
Social Security represent FDR’s program of “relief, recovery, and reform”? For each of the
three words, write one quote or example that illustrates connections.
Document B: NAACP
1. Close Reading What four groups does Houston say are excluded from Social Security?
2. Corroborating What would NAACP representative Houston say about FDR’s speech
(Document A)? Select a line from Document A: FDR and explain how Houston might
disagree.
Social Security
Document C: Stealing
1. Sourcing What does the author tell us about herself? What kind of person do you think
she is based on the information in this letter?
2. Close Reading What was M.A. counting on to support her in old age? And why has she
lost faith that this will support her?
3. Contextualizing How does this author generally feel about the New Deal? How does her
phrase “security at the price of freedom” capture those feelings?
Using information from the movie and all three documents, write one paragraph in
response to the following question: Which historical account of Social Security is more
accurate, Degler’s or Bernstein’s?
Social Security

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Document A: FDR (Modified)

President Franklin D. Roosevelt gave this speech on August 14, 1935

This social security measure gives some protection to 30 million of our

This law, too, represents a cornerstone in a structure intended to lessen

Source: August 14, 1935, excerpt from President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s

Source: Excerpt from the testimony of Charles H. Houston, representing

Americans sent thousands of letters to the White House during FDR’s

Dear Mrs. Roosevelt,

Personally, I had my savings invested so that I would have enough

I am not an “economic royalist,” just an ordinary white-collar worker at

Security at the price of freedom is never desired by intelligent people.

Source: Excerpt from a letter sent to Eleanor Roosevelt by an anonymous

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