African American Women In The 1930s

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White Women and African American Women in the 1930s
The Great Depression hit many people very hard in the 1930s. Some people lost money, jobs, and even houses. This great deficient caused many problems for most people, but affected them in different ways. White women usually did not loose everything, but had just enough to get by. Their roles in the family became much more important and some even tried to find jobs. African American women were hit even harder; there was already the issue of segregation and now being able to get by was even worse. The books Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck and To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee take place during the Great Depression; both show what life was like for different types of people. Steinbeck's …show more content…
After her husband Tom Robinson is killed, she continues to be strong and works very hard. African American women were discriminated upon when they had jobs, but Helen faced the hardships and obstacles. On her way to work, she is followed by Bob Ewell, the man who caused the death of her husband. She walks miles out of the way to avoid him, and when her boss finds out she does not want any trouble: "Just let it be, Mr. Link, please suh" (Lee 333). She knows this is the only opportunity she will get to make money and support her family. Usually during the 1930s, it would be extremely hard for Colored women to find jobs, but Link Deas; Tom Robinson's employer, feels bad about the outcome of the trail. For most African American women, times had been hard but the Great Depression only made it harder. "In 1930 nine out of ten African American women worked in agriculture or domestic service, both areas hit hard by the depression. Housewives who previously hired servants began to do their own housework..." (Ware). The jobs that African American women used to do were taken by white women during the Great Depression. They were very unemployed, and not only did people discriminate against African Americans, they discriminated against women. This made it very hard for African American women to get by during the
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