Introduction
Huey Long was a Senator of the United States (US). At the time when he delivered his speech “Every Man a King” on radio, the US was in the midst of the Great Depression, characterized by a nationwide financial crisis triggered by the crashing of the stock market that sent the national economy plummeting to historically low levels. Long, a popular figure in the US Senate, has gained immense fame due to his policies and proposals aimed at solving the Great Depression. It is in said speech wherein he embodied his thoughts on the reasons why the US has lost so much of its wealth during the Great Depression, using a medium convenient and efficient enough for his purpose of getting his message across throughout the nation (Long 286-290).
Presenting the Problem: Inequality in Wealth Distribution
The US was in the middle of the Great Depression when Long addressed his speech on the radio, and such situation was the very reason that prompted him to speak. He pointed out several reasons accounting for the dire economic situation of the US, centered on the assertion that only a significantly small percentage of the national population has access to much of the wealth of the nation. He noted that many people in the US have fallen to poverty because of the inefficient distribution of wealth, despite the fact that the nation is abundant with various kinds of resources. Pointing out the irony that the US has a wealth of resources although many people do not have access to it, he specified inequality in wealth distribution as the main problem characterizing the crisis. By quoting Plato and Socrates, he stated that the US is bound for destruction if the rich continues getting more riches with the poor remaining in poverty. In that, he noted that the poor should not become too poor and the rich should not become too rich, for the poor could have lesser chances of living a decent life and the rich may grow greedier and deny others of his riches (Long 286-88).
Through a presentation of daunting numerical figures, Long effectively portrayed the reality of the time affecting the US. He portrayed the crisis in the US not in the form of mere rhetoric, but in the form of a real problem that involves numbers representing empirical facts. Another noticeable theme in the speech is his frequent citation of principle-based statements coming from Plato and Socrates, and the Declaration of Independence. Quoting from those two sets of sources have rendered his speech more authoritative and convincing in terms of principle. His target to convince the people that the reality facing the US at that time stems from a failure of observing the principles embedded within those two sources proved pivotal to his campaign of introducing reforms in response to the crisis (Long 286-288).
Presenting the Solution: The Share Our Wealth Program
Long went on with his speech to present the Share Our Wealth Program as his direct solution to the ongoing economic problem in the US. The program has held its basis on the inequality in wealth distribution, to which it suggested redistribution as a solution. Taxing the rich is among the main objectives of the program, with the funds going to benefit plans suited for the welfare of greater education access, pensions for retired citizens and assistance packages for war veterans. Another objective of the program is to give greater regard and honor to the toiling of several laborers across the US, which accounts for a large percentage of the poor in the nation. The program states that laborers should have shorter work hours and a vacation period good for one month per year so that they may not suffer the costs of overworking themselves. Furthermore, the program seeks to impose a figure for minimum wage in order to grant laborers a fair amount of money suitable for their everyday living needs. As noticeable across the overall aims of the program, he tackled the problems besetting the US through a deliberate response to the main problem of inequality benefitting the rich as against the poor (Long 288-290).
Through the Share Our Wealth Program, Long has consciously taken into due consideration the main problem characterizing the Great Depression during his time. He expressly noted that the rich should give portions of their wealth to the poor through a formal mechanism in the form of taxes in order to benefit the entire nation through alleviating the conditions of members of the large poor population. In that sense, he was obviously targeting to gain the attention and support of the ones suffering the most in the crisis in the US – laborers and other people living in poverty, with due consideration of the need to have a concrete solution to the problems facing them. Moreover, it is noticeable that at the last part of the speech, he opened the floor to the public for suggestions concerning the program. It is in that portion in which he fully proved that he is open to engage with the citizenry in making the program successful, rather than simply speaking as if the program is only mere political oratory with no solid plans for solving the national problem (Long 288-290).
Synthesis and Conclusion
One highly prominent aspect in Every Man a King is that Long has used the radio as his main instrument to communicate to the population. It is clear that the speech and the program contained therein is aimed mainly for the resolution of the woes of much of the population of the US during the Great Depression, with the deliverer gaining political leverage as a secondary benefit in the process. There is an understanding that the radio is the main medium of the masses in the US that time; its combination with the masses-targeted speech has brought forth invaluable effects both for the sinking hopes of the citizenry and the political position of the Senator in the radio studio.
In sum, Every Man a King stands out as a successful and historically significant speech that has enabled both the masses and the US and Long himself to gain empowerment. Setting the speech amidst a crucial part of the history of the US has proven to be an effective technique to convince, even encourage, the people to go for solving the crisis. Long, for his part, has simply demonstrated his formula for political success in the speech itself – one combined with charisma and communication efficiency, and real solutions.
Works Cited
American Perspectives: Readings in American History Volume 1. 2nd ed. Ed. History Department Faculty at Houston Community College. London: Pearson Custom Publishing, 2003. Print.
