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Blacks Versus the New Deal

Quite some time ago, I mentioned that I had come across some fascinating cartoons by "L. Rogers" in The Chicago Defender which were highly critical of the New Deal. The Defender was the leading black newspaper in the United States.

As David Bernstein and Jim Powell have pointed out, the minimum wage and other regulations of the National Recovery Administration (NRA) created incentives for white racists to discriminate against low wage black labor.

Many of Rogers' cartoons show a good understanding of this as well as perceptive appreciation of the unintended consequences of legislation on human behavior. Perhaps he read Frederic Bastiat.

In the cartoon (see above) from January 27, 1934, the first panel shows a father telling his wife and family cheerily: "Dear, the old factory is now a member of the 'NRA' which means I'll get better wages and better hours."

The second panel shows the father and other dejected workers standing outside a closed factory under a sign reading "NOTICE: Under the 'NRA' this factory shall advance wages and minimize hours of all employes. Henceforth we shall employ white help only."

Posted on Tuesday, September 28, 2004 at 9:39 AM | Comments (9) | Return

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