As part of President Harry Truman’s Fair Deal, the Housing Act of 1949 provided millions of dollars to demolish outdated, unsafe buildings and to create affordable housing in American cities. This lesson uses Newark, New Jersey, as a case study to consider the effectiveness of this effort. Students examine five documents to answer this question: Was the development of public housing in Newark after World War II a success?
Image: Photo of a public housing project in Newark in 1944. From the Library of Congress.