Those who look to the New Deal as a possible model for Democratic economic policies in this era...

[moriah]

50. Before I spend the $10 to get the book ...

... may I ask you this?

Do you think the impact on women and people of color under the original Social Security Act was good or bad by its exclusion of domestic and agricultural laborers from protections?

Yes, there were a number of white agricultural laborers in the '30s -- my grandfather was one -- and white women did work as domestic help too. But 60% of the nation's people of color were among that group of excluded workers, and the exclusion for domestic workers ended only in 1950 (1954 for agricultural and hotel work). For many that meant they were 20 years behind in work credits.

Essentially, yes, it did codify protections first for people with education and training enough to be employed in other sectors of the economy -- to people working in "commerce and industry". Which left many people behind, intentionally or not.

From this white person's perspective, I can see it feeling at least somewhat annoying to think of the populist message of "Y'all can pull yourself up by your bootstraps with this help for everyone, and everything be fine" when your bootstraps have between decades and centuries more wear on them.

Economic justice must go hand in hand with social justice. That's what distinguishes Democrats and American liberalism from other political paths.