News
I had spoken to Beth Danysh many times over the phone but it was not until 2010 that I finally met her in person. Beth was an interior designer, a talent clearly in evidence at her beautiful home in Rancho… read more
Originally called Jersey Homesteads and renamed Roosevelt in 1945, the tiny borough was one of 99 towns created under the New Deal’s Resettlement Administration, whose broad mission also included relocating migrant laborers as part of an effort to create employment and social stability…. read more
In addition to the calamity of the Great Depression, in the 1930s the U.S. was beset by environmental catastrophes—floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, drought and a Dust Bowl. But the nation had something then that it does not have in 2012 to deal with devastating storms such as hurricanes Katrina, Irene and Sandy. WPA and CCC workers were trained in disaster aid and recovery. Tens of thousands of men and women could be quickly mobilized…. read more
The Downtown Berkeley’s Main Post Office is widely recognized as not just a local treasure but also a national treasure. In June, the U.S. Postal Service notified the City of Berkeley of the impending sale of the downtown post office. Gray Brechin, Harvey Smith and Ying Lee of the Living New Deal quickly joined forces with labor and community organizers to form Citizens to Save the Berkeley Post Office. … read more
Some 3,700 historic buildings across the country are on the chopping block as the US Postal Service moves forward with “realignment” plans. For more details on the fight to save the post offices watch for our October newsletter, coming later… read more
File this one under New Deal ironies: a candidate running on a shrink-the-government platform, holding a key campaign event in a CCC-built jewel, Colorado’s Red Rocks Amphitheater. Matt Ferner wrote about it this week in the Huffington Post: “Red Rocks… read more
If you have a spare 10 minutes, Jon Stewart’s Oct. 9 dissection of the Romney-Ryan fiscal plan offers some food for thought. You can read more about it and watch the three-segment video here. In the third segment, you’ll get a… read more
Susan Ives, of Susan Ives Communications, responds to the Oct. 3 presidential debate: Romney’s remark about “trickle down government” is pandering to the same segment of society that hated Franklin Delano Roosevelt and that still maligns the New Deal. Meanwhile… read more
