Philip Evergood’s "Jobs Not Dimes" was inspired by his visit to a New York City “Hooverville,” an encampment of unemployed and unhoused men named to criticize President Herbert H. Hoover, whose economic policies were believed to have contributed to the Great Depression. The two men, one Black and one white, highlight the pervasive nature of the Depression’s unemployment and poverty, as well as the solidarity of the two men in those trying circumstances.

"Jobs Not Dimes" references John D. Rockefeller, who gave a dime to everyone he met but unfairly exploited his workers. The title also references the song, “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime” (1930), which captured the shattered dreams of the Depression generation: “Once I built a tower up to the sun / Brick and rivet and lime / Once I built a tower, now it’s done / Brother, can you spare a dime?”