Twelve thousand American veterans of World War I stood on the Capitol lawn on June 17, 1932, while the Senate debated the “Bonus Bill.” Already passed by the House, the bill would have authorized immediate payment of a bonus that the veterans were due to receive in 1945. The veterans demanded their bonus right away, to help them and their families survive the economic hardships of the Great Depression. Bonus Marchers came from all over the country, set up tents on vacant land around Washington, and then gathered at the Capitol to await the final vote. Some senators feared mob violence, but when the Senate defeated the Bonus Bill, the marchers vowed to continue their fight, sang “America,” and returned to their camps. Yet the Bonus March ended tragically. U.S. Army troops under the command of General Douglas MacArthur drove the marchers from the city and burned their camps. There were 100 casualties, and two children died in tear-gas attacks. Still, the Bonus Marchers had demonstrated the seriousness of their plight and the need for federal action to end the depression.
Sources
- William Manchester, The Glory and the Dream: A Narrative History of America, 1932–1972 (Boston: Little, Brown, 1974)
