Life in the 1930s

The time Period in which our novel, Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, takes place.

The Depression and Racial Segregation

!! http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=KebHqCxOGZY

What is a depression?
!! A depression is a worldwide economic disaster. Banks failed and people did not have jobs, money, or any assistance from government programs (i.e. Social Security and Welfare) for food and shelter.

How the worth of money changes from the 1930s to Today

!! The worth of money changes over time. Today, $100.00 in 1930 (a lot of money back then) would be worth $1204.42 because of inflation !!In 1930, $1 billion dollars would now be worth $12 billion dollars !!In 1930 the average income was $1,970.00 per year but by 1939 it decreased to $1,730.00. Item New House A Gallon of Gas New Car Cost in 1930 $7,145.00 $0.10 $640.00 Cost by 1939 $3,800.00 $0.10 $700.00

What are Racial Segregation and the Jim Crow Laws?

!! Racial segregation is the separation of humans into racial groups in daily life. It may apply to activities such as eating in a restaurant, drinking from a water fountain, using a public toilet, attending school, going to the movies, or in the rental or purchase of a home. Racial segregation was legal in the 1930s. !! The Jim Crow Laws, enforced racial segregation by regulating social, economic, and political relationships between whites and African Americans, and were passed principally to enforce rules favored by dominant whites.
!! The name Jim Crow came from a character in an early nineteenth-century minstrel. A minstrel is a comic variety show that featured white actors in blackface.

Examples of Racial Segregation

Connection to Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry

!! Our novel takes place in the 1930s in Mississippi !! Like what historically happened during the 1930s, Taylors characters first hand experience the woes of racial segregation, poor economic times, and the Jim Crow Laws. !! In our novel, the other black families, unlike the Logan family, are sharecroppers or people who farm a portion of an owners farm and are paid a share of the value of the yielded crop.