Yoel Feinberg
Period 1
The Hawley-Smoot Act
What was it:
The Hawley Smoot Act, also known as the United States tariff act of 1930, can be credited for a large portion in the cause of the Great Depression both in America and throughout the world. It is considered to be one of the biggest economic blunders of all time. What the Hawley-Smoot act did was it tried to protect American farmers and their industry by raising tax prices for international trade at an astoundingly high percentage. Before the act was passed the tariff rate was already at an all-time high with the officiation of the Fordney-McCumber act. The Fordney-McCumber act made the average tax percentage around 40% for all imports, which is very high. What the Hawley Smoot Act did was it raised this average by more than 20%, causing a chain reaction that came with an international economic crisis.
What were the effects: 
The Hawley-Smoot act began an economic chain reaction of isolation. When the US announced import taxes at a new high, foreign entities retaliated by raising their import taxes as well. This discouraged and international trade and therefore halted a flow of resources and money between countries leading to an unprecedented decline in jobs and industry strength. It may as well be possible that if the Hawley-Smoot act was not passed, the Great Depression's duration could have been cut in half, or even more. Due to the growth of protectionism, an idealism that believes that a country can isolate itself to protect its industries, the act went through well in the House and was quickly accepted by president Hoover, even though over 1000 economists spoke up in warning. The act’s power was felt until FDR’s election.
How to fix things:
When Franklin Roosevelt was elected he knew that this act must be cancelled in some way. So he passed the Reciprocal Trade Agreements act which reduced the tariffs on imports and encouraged international trade. While this helped the economy, it also helped the parts of the world that perhaps should be traded with. These include regimes like the Nazis in Germany who were quickly gaining power under Hitler.
Sources:
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Smoot-Hawley-Tariff-Act
http://americastradepolicy.com/did-the-smoot-hawley-tariff-cause-the-great-depression/#.WEOTEqIrLfY
http://americanhistory.about.com/od/greatdepression/f/smoot_hawley.htm
Sources:
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Smoot-Hawley-Tariff-Act
http://americastradepolicy.com/did-the-smoot-hawley-tariff-cause-the-great-depression/#.WEOTEqIrLfY
http://americanhistory.about.com/od/greatdepression/f/smoot_hawley.htm
This is an interesting analysis of how a single bill can drastically effect the economy and potentially help the rise of the Nazi regime. This is one of the causes of the Great Depression that would have been invisible to most citizens. As a result, many of the true causes were masked, and this is a small example of this.
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