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NYC Chapter Webinars
Our New York City chapter offers webinars among its many activities. Here are the videos of past webinars.
Unions from the Wagner Act to the New Labor Movement
with Kevin Baker, Kate Bronfenbrenner, Jeff Gold, Michelle Kuchinsky, Rebecca Damon & Gracie Nira
Dec 18, 2023
We discuss the New Deal’s Wagner Act which legalized collective bargaining and the ebbs and flows of labor’s empowerment up to this year’s surge in unionization and successful strikes. Speakers focus on both the political and economic context of government policy and the challenges and opportunities for union activism.
Webinar – Social Security: Demographics, Economics, Politics & its Futurewith Kevin Baker, Douglas Arnold & Nancy Altman
Jun 29, 2023
Roosevelt House and Living New Deal’s NYC Chapter are pleased to present an expert roundtable to explore how federal policy initiatives can spur revitalization of regional agriculture, better conditions for farm and food-processing workers, more equitable food distribution, and improved nutrition for all Americans — measures that recall successful New Deal programs.
Transforming the Nation’s Food System: Lessons from the New Deal and Strategies for Today
with Kate MacKenzie, Annette Nielsen, Jan Poppendieck & Myron Thurston
March 2023
This expert roundtable explores Social Security, from its New Deal inception, growth and adaptation through the decades to current challenges and future prospects. Kevin Baker speaks on Social Security’s inception, followed by Douglas Arnold on Social Security’s growth, and adaptations to the present. Nancy Altman focuses on current challenges Social Security faces. The panelists, along with moderator Teresa Ghilarducci, will explore and debate how Social Security can meet the challenges it faces through in this period. Social Security is a Third Rail of American politics because of its popularity, but it’s also facing demographic, economic and political challenges. In 2034 Social Security’s Trust Fund built up over decades by past surpluses will be exhausted. This will cause a gap between that year’s Social Security tax revenues and benefits due, if no changes are made. Social Security tax revenues will then cover only 80% of benefits due, leaving a 20% gap. This challenge was faced in past decades and changes were made to close the gap. We will explore the mix of changes to not only close this gap, but to fortify and expand Social Security by boosting revenue and expanding benefits. The greatest impediment is political, amidst opposing agendas. This webinar will explore the way forward in the tradition of the New Deal.
COVID-19, the Great Depression, and the Battle between Memory and Forgetting
with Dave Chokshi, MD, Sharon Musher & Karen Kruse Thomas
December 2022
Both the Great Depression and the COVID-19 pandemic raised profound questions about government responsibility for public health and welfare, but cultural and political responses to each differed dramatically.Join With Dave Chokshi, MD, Sharon Musher, Karen Kruse Thomas, and moderator Robert Snyder on medicine, public health and the New Deal for a conversation about the history and politics of remembering and forgetting, and their implications for how we think about our past and future in light of COVID.
Ill-Housed, Then and Now
with Adam Roberts, Gail Radford, Rob Robinson, Samuel Stein & Mason Williams
November 2022
Linking history with the present moment, the roundtable will go beyond abstraction and dive into a wide range of topics, including shortages, affordability, evictions, and homelessness – giving “teeth” to the principle of decent shelter for all as a fundamental and universal human right.
The Unfinished Business of the New Deal
with Kevin Baker, Teresa Ghilarducci, Toure Reed, Darrick Hamilton & Phil Harvey
October 2022
The New Deal transformed America, putting in place policies, programs, and massive building projects that endure to this day. From Social Security to bank deposit insurance and from the TVA to your local school and post office—all of these and more came into being during this period of spectacular growth and innovation. But what was left undone? Consider the Four Freedoms and FDR’s Economic Bill of Rights speech, and you begin to get a sense of the world the New Dealers envisioned and hoped to realize. This evening’s discussion will identify both the actual and aspirational gaps between what was done and what wasn’t—what has endured and what has fallen by the wayside—and suggest what progressives can do today to fulfill the New Deal’s promise and vision.
Preparing for War How the New Deal Helped America Join the Fight Against Fascism and Win World War
with Bob Leighninger & Kevin Baker
February 2022
It is often said that the New Deal didn’t end the Depression—the war did. But Baker and Leighninger contend that the opposite is the case. The many programs devised by the Roosevelt Administration to combat the Great Depression also provided the personnel, infrastructure, and experience that allowed the country to respond to the expansionist aims of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan swiftly and effectively, turning the tide in favor of the Allies and ultimately winning the war.
Pools, Parks, and the New Deal in Greater New York
with Robert W. Snyder, Marta Gutman & Rose Harvey
June 2021
The New Deal built a network of parks and recreation facilities that still enriches life in the New York metropolitan area. Maintaining and extending this inheritance has meant confronting both racial discrimination and budget cuts. Join us as we explore the New Deal’s legacy for our region’s parks and contemporary efforts to build parks for communities that lack green space.
Ill-Housed: Housing Policy for the New Deal and Today
with Deborah Gardner, Matthew Gorden Lasner & Jenny Schuetz
June 2021
Eighty-five years ago, as a result of the Great Depression, America suffered an acute housing crisis. How did the New Deal respond, and what lessons can we take away from its successes and failures to help address the current housing crisis? For low, moderate, and middle-income families, the current crisis had its origins in the 2008 recession and was disastrously exacerbated by the pandemic, which brought with it increased evictions and homelessness. What are the proposals being put forth to address immediate and long-term housing needs, and what chance do they have of being enacted? How do those proposals address financial as well as racial inequities in the housing market? Our speakers will provide an overview of the New Deal’s innovative housing programs for urban, suburban, rural, and migrant families; and then examine current plans for financing and building housing, as well as ensuring the equitable distribution of housing assets.
The New Deal and Far-Right Extemism: Saving the Republic
with Kevin Baker, Margaret Crane & Jeff Gold
March 24, 2021
Picture an America in which an angry crowd of radical veterans surround the Capitol and are dispersed only with tear gas and gunfire. An America in which a disgruntled Marine general is approached about leading a coup to overturn an election; in which right-wing fanatics hoard weapons, set up paramilitary and youth indoctrination camps around the country, and encourage children to turn in undocumented immigrants. An America in which a ranting demagogue sends his followers into the streets to assault Jews and spread stories of foreign subversion. Where a clownish, would-be president plots to grab the White House by forming his own third party and splitting the vote. Where the most outlandish conspiracy theories and the wildest rumors are spread everywhere about the president, his wife and children, and his most trusted advisors.
No, we’re not talking about America today but America in the 1930s, when the Bonus Army marched on Washington, the fascist “Silver Shirts” set up a Manson-like compound outside Los Angeles, millions tuned in to hear Father Coughlin spread his anti-Semitic poison over the airwaves, and American Nazis set up such a large youth camp on Long Island that the Long Island Railroad had to run special trains to it from Grand Central Station every weekend. Learn about just how extremist America could be, back when Donald Trump was still just a twinkle in his father’s eye—and Fred Christ Trump was still just a home-building Klansman in Queens.
Hear the sort-of-shocking, sort-of-reassuring story of how the country held on during the ultimate stress test of the Great Depression and the approach to World War II. It’s the story of how we saved democracy before—and how we might do it again.
Health of a Nation: Past Inspirations, Recent Lessons and Equitable Planning for the Future
with Carmelita Blake, Deborah Gardner & Donald Moore
February 8, 2021
Among its many achievements, the New Deal devoted significant resources to improving public health. Join our panel as they explore this forgotten history and seek ways to address the public health challenges we face today.
From the Original New Deal to the Green New Deal
with Kevin Baker, Robert Kuttner, Mitchell Silver, Deborah Gardner, Julian Brave NoiseCat, Elisa Iturbe & Billy Fleming
September 20, 2020
Starting out as a set of aspirational policy objectives, the Green New Deal has rapidly gained traction among policymakers, change agents, and the public. It draws its inspiration from the New Deal, which offers a compelling model for tackling the challenges ahead. Our distinguished speakers will lead a discussion about the economic, environmental, social, and political changes that many of us want to see and be part of..