Activity Two: FDR's Fireside Chat on the "Arsenal of Democracy"
Read FDR's "Arsenal of Democracy" Fireside Chat. Answer the first set of questions that follow the text. Create a list of all the things FDR says America will do, and mark any item on the list that suggests an expansion of federal power with an "E." With your class, discuss what it meant for America to become the "Arsenal of Democracy" and what role would America play in the world. Answer the second set of questions below.
First set of questions (to answer individually):
- Who threatens America and the world?
- Who is fighting to hold off and defeat that threat?
- What do the people who are defending themselves ask of the United States?
- How can the United States aid the defenders of Democracy?
- Why should management and labor get along without strikes or lockouts?
- Who will decide if the production of consumer or luxury goods needs to yield to defense production?
- What alternative does Roosevelt pose to arming Britain and other democracies?
Second set of questions (to answer during group discussion):
- What would the role of the U.S. as an "Arsenal of Democracy" mean for Americans in general?
For workers? For factory owners? For consumers?
- What might it have cost to become the arsenal of democracy and who would pay for it?
- What were the implications of Roosevelt's speech for an expansion of federal power?