Rise of ProgressivismCh.17

Why Change was Needed “I am, therefore, a Progressive because we have not

kept up with our changes of conditions, either in the economic field or in the political field. We have not kept up as well as other nations have. We have not adjusted our practices to the facts of the case.”

-Woodrow Wilson, campaign speech, 1912.

Industrialization, immigration, and urban expansion led to extreme growth.

Growth led to obvious issues.

Progressive Movement is catapulted when Teddy Roosevelt becomes the President of the U.S

Progressivism-Make moderate political changes and social

improvements through government action.

Extreme diversity in the “progressive” movement.

Wanted pragmatism- logical thinking of how to help society.

William James and John Dewey- Argued for practical and experimental approaches to create morals, ideals, and knowledge. (Taylorism)

Antimonopoly and Faith in Knowledge

Muckrakers Teddy Roosevelt coined this term after people that

exposed the realties “muck” of party politics, monopolies, slums, etc… to the people.

Origins: Henry Demarest Lloyd- 1881 wrote a series of articles for the Atlantic Monthly attacking Standard Oil Company.

Magazines: Lincoln Steffens and Ida Tarbell wrote magazines that exposed Standard Oil Company.

Books: How the Other Half Lives (Jacob Riis), The Shame of the Cities (Lincoln Steffens), etc…

Decline of Muckraking

Declines after 1910.Reasons:1) Hard to top the previous stories.2) Banks and advertisers pressured

publishers to tone down their writing. 3) Corporations started PR campaigns.

Social Gospel Walter Rauschenbusch- Protestant

Christian’s who wanted to attack urban poverty.

Salvation Army (Best Example)

Moral fiber added to progressivism

Settlement House Movement Jane Addams and the Hull House Ignorance, poverty, and criminality were a

product of an unhealthy environment.

Aid immigrant families adapt to new ways of life in America.

Helped produce social work.

Middle Class ExpandingMore professional jobsExample: AMA (American Medical Association)Standards set on practicing medicine. Lawyers- Pass professional bar exams. National Association of Manufacturers.

Women and ProfessionsFew women were “professionals”Usually worked in settlement houses,

social work, or “appropriate” jobs. Teachers, nursing, etc…

Women and ReformWomen play a big role in reform“New Woman”- Women who have more

opportunities than just domestic life. Declining family size, school for children,

new technologies in the home, higher divorce rate etc…

Some women did not marry.

Women’s Clubs Middle and Upper class women.General Federation of Women’s Clubs

(1892)- 100,000 members and 500 clubs, by 1917- 1 Million.

Start to focus on social progress.Gave women a say outside of the home

and family.

Impact of Women’s ClubsHelped get passed laws regulating woman and

child labor. Government work inspections, regulate food and drug industries, reform Indian tribes, new standards for urban housing, outlawed the manufacture and sale of alcohol, pensions to widowed or abandoned mothers, Children’s Bureau in the Labor Department.

Women’s Trade Union League

Women’s Suffrage Women’s suffrage was a VERY radical

issue. “Natural Rights” Women the same as

men???Challenged women’s roles as wives and

mothers. Formation of the antisuffrage movement.

Women Gain MomentumNational American Women Suffrage

Association- 13,000 in 1893 and 2 million in 1917.

Movement became less challenging against traditional female roles.

Argued it would help temperance movement. 1910- Washington became the 1st state to

allow women to vote. Then California, and then 4 other Western states.

19th Amendment1913-Illinois became the first state east of

the Mississippi to give women the right to vote.

1917 & 1918- New York & Michigan gave women the right to vote.

1919- 39 states granted women the right to vote in some elections.

1920- 19th Amendment is passed to give women suffrage.

Equal Rights AmendmentSome women wanted more.Wanted clear protection against all forms

of discrimination against women. Not very popular even among most

women.

Assault on Parties Reform in Cities and States

Government was considered corrupt, ineffective, and undemocratic.

Wanted to reform government.

Successes:Secret BallotDirect Primaries- Robert LaFollete created a system

where the people would vote on federal positions. . Direct election of U.S Senators- 1913 17th

Amendment required all U.S Senators to be elected by popular vote.

Reform in Cities and States cont…Successes: Initiative, Referendum, and Recall- Make politicians

listen to the people. Initiative- Voters could compel legislature to consider a

bill.Referendum- Allow citizens to vote on proposed laws.Recall- Voters could remove corrupt politicians from

office. Robert La Follette- Governor of Wisconsin- Gained direct

primaries, initiatives, and referendums, etc…

Social Welfare: Better schools, juvenile courts, liberalized divorce laws,

safety regulations for tenements and factories, parole, and limits on the death penalty.

Municipal Reform Controlling public utilities: Water systems,

gas lines, electric power plants, & urban transportation would start to be owned by individual cities.

Commissions and city managers: Voters elected the heads of city departments

City-Manager Plan- Someone untainted by politics would oversee government.

Decline of Party Influence Progressivism leads to a decline in voter

turnout and party influence.

“Interest Groups” became much more popular.

Even political machines help the progressive movement.

Triangle Shirtwaist Fire 1911- Fire started in the factory in NY. 146 workers died. State commission studied the case and

eventually made major reforms. Stricter labor laws and regulations.

Western Progressives

Biggest problem was dealing with the excess federal government power over the West.

Fed Gov. controlled land and resources in the West.

African Americans and ReformBooker T. Washington called for blacks to help

themselves. W.E.B DuBois spoke against Washington’s cause.

Accused Washington of instigating more white segregation.

Voice for talented blacks to aspire for higher education.

Helped found the NAACP in 1909Gunn v. United States- Grandfather clause was

unconstitutional. NAACP- Relied on the “talented tenth”

Temperance Movement Alcoholism- Blamed for causing violence, work

accidence, broken families, divorce, cheating, unemployment etc…

WCTU- (Women’s Christian Temperance Union)1916- 19 states had passed prohibition laws. 1917- Eighteenth Amendment passed to prohibit the

sale and manufacture of alcohol became law in 1920.

Immigration Restriction Most reformers felt immigrants hurt the U.S. Some wanted to help, others wanted to limit the amount

coming in. Carnegie Foundation funded the study of eugenics to alter

human reproduction. Advocated sterilization of mentally retarded, criminals,

etc… Dillingham Report stated newer immigrants didn’t

assimilate well.

Challenging Capitalism Socialist Party of America- Had the most support

ever from 1900-1914.

Eugene Debs in the election of 1900 gained 100,000 votes.

In 1912 he gained over 1 Million.

Socialists wanted change in the economy but in a different way than most.

(IWW) Industrial Workers of the World- Radical or “Wobblies”

IWW

Very radicalShut down timber production. Federal government was mobilizing for

war and needed that timber supply.Federal gov. passed laws outlawing the

IWW. End of WWI the party lost support because

they didn’t support the war.

Decentralization and RegulationMany wanted to regulate corporationsBut most still believed in capitalism. Louis Brandeis argued large corporations

were inefficient and abused their power.

(Good trusts and Bad trusts)

Teddy Roosevelt “We should enter upon a course of supervision, control, and regulation of those great corporation- a regulation which we should not fear, if necessary, to bring to the point of control of monopoly prices.”