Dinner with President Franklin Roosevelt by Kamalita

Dinner with President Franklin Roosevelt by Kamalita - October 2017 Scholarship Essay

If I had to have dinner with one specific President, I would pick President Franklin Roosevelt. He lived during World War 2 and was famous for so many great things. I would have loved to discuss events that occurred straight from a person who witnessed and lived through those times.
Franklin Roosevelt was the president who alleviated the effects of the Great Depression and solved a lot of problems for the citizens of the United States at that time. He did not just consider one part of the population but he did everything he could for all of us. He considered each and every citizen of the United States and his policies helped them greatly in times of depression and economic difficulty. He created and implemented many policies that benefited the people despite the unpopularity his policies gained from the wealthy members of society and the government officials of that time. Some of his policies survive today and are a major part of our society and culture such as the Social Security Act, which protects and provides for elderly people, handicapped children, dependent mothers, and the unemployed. I believe President Roosevelt was solely responsible for the end of the Great Depression; without him and his insistence of the New Deal, perhaps America would be different today. Another thing I admire about Roosevelt was his disregard towards society’s feelings towards the New Deal, in particular the wealthy members of society who disliked the New Deal as it favored the poor and disadvantaged members of society which took a great deal of money to maintain.
The one period of time that I am fascinated about is World War 2. I want to know everything about what happened during Pearl Harbor, Asia and Germany during the war. It is one thing to hear about such events but it is completely different to witness such events. I would love to hear a first hand tale on what happened in the US during Pearl Harbor, and how did American citizens react to this Japanese attack and to the Holocaust? I greatly admire President Roosevelt for holding America together during this war as well as for being ready to participate in this war from the very beginning that it started. In truth, Mr. Roosevelt wanted to join Britain against Germany as soon as Germany started its tyrannical actions under Hitler but America was firmly against entering another war, so soon after World War 1 and the Great Depression. America did not want to get involved in the problems of Europe but Roosevelt did as he wanted to protest the injustices that Hitler did. I admire him for never trying to hide his feelings on what he wanted to do during World War 2 and his feelings on America’s neutrality until Pearl Harbor. I wonder why he accepted and implemented the Executive Order No. 9066 which placed all Japanese Americans into internment camps due to fear of any treasonous actions regarding Japan. I knew Roosevelt was resigned and had to agree to this law because of the safety of national security but I wonder why he agreed to it? From all accounts, he had always been inclined to needs of the minority and disadvantaged groups in America, so why would he lock away innocent Japanese Americans who had done no crime but been born in a certain race.
I would love to meet President Franklin Roosevelt so that I could ask him all types of questions from that period of time and learn true history free from propaganda and lies.