May 10-11, 2025: A Works Progress Administration for the 21st Century

[On May 6th,1935, Franklin Roosevelt established the WorksProgress Administration [WPA]. So this week I’ve AmericanStudied ahandful of WPA histories, leading up to this weekend post on why we need a 21stcentury revival!]

I’m notgonna lie, I planned the main focal points for this series long ago, before thestart of the new Trump administration (another inside baseball blog detail)—andgiven that the new administration’s #1 priority has been cutting federal jobsand programs and departments, it seems beyond silly to even suggest somethinglike a Works Progress Administration in 2025.

But here’sthe thing: I’ve spent a good bit of the last decade-plus of my career arguingthat we can’t cede concepts, ideas, ideals over to the MAGA types. Not patriotism,not America,and, yes, not federalworkers. So there’s no way I’m gonna let Elon Musk, his DOGE lackeys, andthe ostensible President dictate how we think about federal workers andprograms in any way, much less in the worst possible ways that they’ve beenarguing for in both words and actions over the last few months. Not when we’vegot so many models of the best of federal workers and of America through them,with the WPA a whole host of prime examples.

So yes, Ideeply believe we need a new WPA for the 21st century. The fact thatwe most definitely will not get it during this administration only makes memore certain that we need to argue and fight for it, and all such ideas thatrepresent our highest ideals, moving forward.

Semesterreflections series starts Monday,

Ben

PS. Whatdo you think?