In New York, increased numbers of people in the city’s bread lines were an early bellwether. In the spring of 1930, the bread lines did not disperse as usual. The bread lines, with their dubious nutritional standards and uncertain supplies, had never been intended as more than a stopgap. Because it was socially unacceptable for young women to patronize bread lines, “business girls” often went hungry. As the Depression deepened, for most Americans the question became not whether one suffered, but in what way.

Source: New York Times September 09, 2016 17:37 UTC