How it all started
An extreme drought and the Dust Bowl occurred in parts of the
Midwest between 1931 and 1940. The Dust Bowl and these droughts occurred due to
unusual weather conditions, which caused a lack of rain. For an example of the
effects of the severe droughts in the Midwest, thousands of Okies were forced to
leave their homes to go to California for work. Californians called Okies “dumb
Okies” because they were “poor and uneducated.” “Okies” were defined as poor
dirt farmers from the Panhandle of Oklahoma; however, this group also included
people from Texas, Arkansas, and Missouri. The ways the Okies’ were treated were
often considered unethical or controversial. John Steinbeck published “The
Grapes of Wrath” in 1939 that brought attention to the terrible conditions that
the Okies had to endure. The Dust Bowl made people such as the Okies suffer both
emotionally and financially.
Midwest between 1931 and 1940. The Dust Bowl and these droughts occurred due to
unusual weather conditions, which caused a lack of rain. For an example of the
effects of the severe droughts in the Midwest, thousands of Okies were forced to
leave their homes to go to California for work. Californians called Okies “dumb
Okies” because they were “poor and uneducated.” “Okies” were defined as poor
dirt farmers from the Panhandle of Oklahoma; however, this group also included
people from Texas, Arkansas, and Missouri. The ways the Okies’ were treated were
often considered unethical or controversial. John Steinbeck published “The
Grapes of Wrath” in 1939 that brought attention to the terrible conditions that
the Okies had to endure. The Dust Bowl made people such as the Okies suffer both
emotionally and financially.