Freedom from want and Freedom from fear

Of FDR's four freedoms, the goal of freedom from want and freedom from fear especially reflect American and European experiences during the 1930s and 1940s. Briefly explain what FDR meant by "freedom from want" and "freedom from fear" and explain how the desire for these freedoms was the result of American and European experiences during the 1930s and 1940s.

On January 6, 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt discussed four freedoms during a speech that he delivered to Congress. Of the four freedoms, the two freedoms that reflect American and European experiences of the time are the freedom from want and freedom from fear. The goal of President Roosevelt’s freedom from want internationally was to eliminate trade barriers with an economic understanding that would allow every nation the opportunity to provide a healthy peacetime life for its citizens. On a national level, President Roosevelt’s goal was to protect the future standard of living for the American worker and farmer by preventing a Depression from resuming after the war. In other words, he wanted to eliminate the average person’s feelings of need that they had experienced during harsh economic times. The goal of President Roosevelt’s freedom from fear was a world-wide reduction of armaments to a degree that no nation is ever in the position to commit an act of physical aggression against a neighbor. President Roosevelt’s goals are easily understood since World War II was raging in Europe and Japan was aggressive in Asia. There is no question, that President Roosevelt believed that freedom from want and freedom from fear were important. These two freedoms were included in the Atlantic Charter that he and Prime Minister Winston Churchill signed in August 1941.

In the 1930’s, Americans experienced unimaginable hardships that cannot be put into words. People who thought they were living the American dream lost everything. Those who were fortunate enough to have a job were frightened. This is not surprising since they had witnessed friends and neighbors lose their jobs. Then, the families where thrown out on the streets because they could not pay their bills. There was absolutely no guarantee that this would not happen to you next. Banks had failed and prior to 1933 there was not a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to guarantee deposits. This meant that if a bank failed, you could loose everything. After the FDIC was created, people still had no confidence and had lost all trust in the banking system. Obviously, bank failures meant industry failures and the losses were of catastrophic proportion.

Unfortunately, the 1930’s in Europe were far worse than in America. The extent of the Depression was greater because Europe was still recovering from World War I. Countries had staggering war debt that had to be repaid. Food was even scarcer because agricultural land had been destroyed and was in various stages of recovery. To make matters worse, Adolf Hitler became the dictator of Germany in 1935. He then started to remilitarize Germany and the Rhineland.

Economically, in the 1940’s, America was recovering from the Depression. The largest contributing factor to the recovery was that American industries were supplying Great Britain and its Allies with military equipment and supplies. WWII was underway in Europe, but in America something else was happening. Newsreels of the war were being aired in movie theaters all across America. For the first time, Americans could see in some what real time the destruction and human suffering that was taking place in Europe. On December 7, 1941, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor and in four short days America was at war on two continents. Reality and fear spread quickly because people knew that the media correspondents would now be reporting on American suffering and causalities. People were thankful that the war was not being fought on American soil.

The 1940’s brought absolute devastation to Europe. Countries were being destroyed and the numbers of military and civilian casualties were unthinkable. People were living in absolute terror. Imagine living near the industrialized city of Corby in Great Britain. The German bombing raids were relentless on industrial centers. To deter the German’s bombing raid at night all lights were turned off. Blackout curtains were placed over all windows so that no light could be seen from the outside. The city and surrounding countryside was in total darkness at night. Walking the streets at night was terrifying. People could hear the German planes in the distance. They could also hear the rats scurrying about but they could not see them. People literally lived from one moment to the next not knowing what might happen.

The Great Depression devastated America and Europe in the 1930’s. WWII destroyed Europe and the media allowed Americans to witness the destruction of countries and the loss of human life. The events of the 1930’s and the 1940’s impacted and changed a generation. There is no question that Americans and Europeans alike longed for freedom from want and freedom from fear. The problem was that trust had been lost. This meant that a Depression could happen again and so could war. These realities were forever etched in the minds of those who survived the 1930’s and the 1940’s. You cannot blame people for believing that although recovery was occurring in the late 1940’s anything gained could be lost at any moment.