The Progressive Era

The Progressive Era TEAM US HISTORY

Industrialization “Recap” • Industries as “Big Business” grew in response to technological innovations such as the Bessemer Steel Process, electricity, mass communication, and shipping. Afforded factories the ability to become more productive and at a faster rate. • The increased numbers of immigrants provided industrialists with more potential workers to pick from.

The Progressive Movement • The end of the 19th Century saw economic and urban growth along with a widening gap between the rich and the poor. • The Progressive movement focused on reforming urban problems such as workers rights, poor sanitation, and corrupt politicians • Progressives were usually native born, middle class or upper class, and college educated people. • Journalist called muckrakers uncovered urban exploitation in investigative reports. (Upton Sinclair & Ida B. Wells) • The Social Gospel held that Christianity had an obligation to help the poor and less fortunate.

Origins of Progressivism • Although the Progressive movement had its origins in the state reforms of the early 1890’s, it acquired national momentum only with the dawn of a new century and the unexpected swearing into office of a young president, Theodore Roosevelt, in 1901. • So enthusiastic did middle-class Americans become about the need to adjust to changing times that their reformist impulse gave a name to an era: The Progressive Era. • It lasted through the Republican presidential of Roosevelt (1901-1909) and William Howard Taft (1909-1913), and the first term of the Democrat, Woodrow Wilson (1913-1917). US entry into WWI in 1917 diverted public attention away from domestic issues and brought the era to an end- but not before major regulatory laws had been enacted by Congress and various state legislatures.

Famous Progressives • In a series of articles Ida Tarbell denounced John B. Rockefellers business practices which included swallowing up smaller companies. • In his book Following the Color Lines, Ray Baker exposed the lynching of African Americans. • In his book The Promise of American LifeHerbert Croly argued that government should use its power to support the welfare of all its people • Jane Addams urged private citizens to take responsibility and work together for change

Reforming the Workplace In 1910 almost half of all working women made less than $6 a week and most children who worked had never been to school. Progressives sought to enact labor laws to limit the number of hours and the types of jobs that women and children could work. By 1912, 39 states had some form of Child Labor laws but a minimum wage for workers would not come until 1938.

Tragedy leads to reform In the early 1900’s the Supreme court favored the rights of businesses over those of the workers, claiming workers always had the right to quit a job if conditions were bad In 1911, 140 New York City factory workers were killed in a fire. The Triangle T-shirt factory lacked fire exits and outrage over the deaths lead lawmakers to pass protective legislation. In 1908 case of Muller v. Oregon the Supreme court upheld a States rights to limit working hours.

Growth of Labor Unions • US3B: Labor leaders blamed company owners and managers for diminishing competition, compensated workers by paying low wages and continuing unsafe working conditions for their employees. • Factory workers established and enlisted in labor unions in order to become a part of collective bargaining process with employers. Many workers went on strike in the 1880s. Three meaningful events of the time period composed of the “Great Strikes,” Homestead, Pullman, and Haymarket Riot.

Labor Unions • Labor unions continued to fight along with Progressives for labor reforms. • Between 1900 and 1914 the American Federation of Labor grew by four times but still excluded unskilled and black workers. • In 1900 the International Ladies’ Garment Workers Union organized the mostly immigrant women workers in sewing shops. • Some industries wanted to have closed shops where workers were required to join unions

Cleaning up the Cities • Reformers also took on the campaign to clean up American cities, literally. • Various women’s clubs worked with government officials to improve sanitation. • Lawrence Veiller called on irresponsible tenement owners to improve living conditions • In 1901 the New York State Tenement House Act required new tenements have one bathroom for every three rooms and open courtyards to allow in light and air.

Other Urban Improvements The National Tuberculosis Association focused on education and special hospitals for the victims of tuberculosis and were successful in significantly dropping the death rate. In 1908 Massachusetts passed a law requiring cities with more than 10,000 people to build at least one playground for children. By 1920 cities all over America were spending millions on playgrounds and sports fields.

City Planning In 1909 The First National Conference on City Planning was held and participants argued that clean cities with impressive architecture would improve civic pride. City governments began to more strictly enforce building codes, sanitation standards and zoning laws. Architect produced plans for redesigning cities with public buildings that would inspire people to be good citizens.

Prohibition (18th amendment) • Progressives wanted to “clean up” what they considered to be immoral behavior. • Prohibition: a ban on the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcoholic beverages – and the closing of the nation’s saloons. • The Anti-Saloon League and the (WCTU) Woman’s Christian Temperance Union led the crusade against the manufacture and sale of alcohol. • Many colleges disallowed student athletes to drink and the U.S. Navy banned alcohol for soldiers fighting in WWI. – Patriotic sacrifice • In 1919 Congress passed the 18th Amendment banning the use or sale of alcohol (repealed in 1933)

W.E.B. DuBois • In 1909, Du Bois was the first African American to earn a doctorate from Harvard University. • Springfield, Illinois lynching launched the foundation for the NAACP (The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) • Du Bois differed from Booker T. Washington (believed education was the key) by encouraging African Americans to be politically active in the fight for equality and maintain a passionate interest in Africa (Souls of Black Folk) • Du Bois would later embrace socialism for its promise of social justice for all people.

African Americans Organize In 1909 a group of African American and white progressives met to discuss the lynching of two African American men, from this meeting came the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People or NAACP. The NAACP published a magazine The Crisis which sold over 100,000 copies in 1918 The NAACP provided money and lawyers for cases involving civil rights and was able to overturn the use of the grandfather clause .

Assimilating Immigrants • Not all progressives agreed on the role of immigrants in American society, some sympathized with them while others rejected them for supporting political machines. • Most progressives supported the Americanization of immigrants, teaching them English and American customs. – Make them more “native-born” • Some states passes Americanization measures that pushed immigrants to study English, US History and Government in public schools.

Government Corruption and a Call for Reform • By the mid 1900’s government corruptionhad spread all the way to the US Congress. • Reformers seeking a more honest government rallied to the slogan, “Give the government back to the people!” • Americans wanted effective leaders that were: honest, fair, had a sense of justice, responsible, willing to confer with subject matter experts, and had decision making skills.

Voter Participation • Political parties could manipulate and intimidate voters by printing lists (or "tickets") of party candidates and watching voters drop them into the ballot box on election day. • In 1888, Massachusetts. was the first state to adopt a system successfully tried in Australia of issuing ballots printed by the state and requiring voters to mark their choices secretly within the privacy of a curtained booth. By 1910, voting in all states was done this way.

Direct Primaries • In the late 19th century, it was the common practice of Republicans and Democrats to nominate candidates for state and federal offices in state conventions dominated by party bosses. • In 1903, the Progressive governor of Wisconsin, Robert LaFollette, introduced his state to a new system for bypassing politicians and placing the nominating process directly in the hands of the voters. • This method for nominating party candidates by majority vote was known as the direct primary. By 1915, some form of the direct primary was used in every state. The system's effectiveness in overthrowing boss rule was limited, as politicians devised ways of confusing the voters and splitting the antimachine vote. Some southern states even used the primary system to exclude African Americans from voting.

Direct Election of US Senators • Before the Progressive era, U.S. senators had been chosen not by the people but by majority vote of the state legislatures. • Progressives believed this was a principal reason that the Senate had become a millionaires' club dominated by big business. Nevada in 1899 was the first state to give the voters the opportunity to elect U.S. senators directly. By 1912, a total of 30 states had adopted this Progressive reform, and in 1913, adoption of the Seventeenth Amendment required that all U.S. senators be elected by popular vote. • Less successful were the Progressives' efforts to reform the state legislatures, which largely remained under the control of political bosses and machines.

Reforming City Government • As progressives and muckrakers continued to uncover corruption in city governments, some reformers began to run for city mayor. • These “good-government” campaigns appealed to voters fed up with scandal and leaders like Samuel “Golden Rule” Jones began to reform cities. • In 1900 after a devastating hurricane, Galveston,turned their city government over to a group of experts; this city commission system soon caught on in many US cities

VOTING REFORMS • Initiative is the process by which special interest groups, through voter participation, propose bills to their legislature for a vote. In this way, voters can force lawmakers to deal with difficult issues. • Referendum is the process by which voters approve bills offered by the legislature. Controversial bills such as tax increases can thus be put to a public vote before becoming law. • Through the process of recall, voters hold the power to remove a public official from office before the next scheduled election.

Roosevelt Becomes President • As governor of New York, Theodore Roosevelt worked to reform government and business. • In 1900, Roosevelt was elected vice-president under McKinley, who was assassinated in 1901 • Roosevelt took office and took a hands on approach to reforming the United States. • Roosevelt successfully intervened in a coal miners strike in 1902, appointing arbitrators to bring compromise between the two sides; this “Square Deal” became his campaign slogan.

Roosevelt Regulates Business • Roosevelt considered big business essential to the nations growth but he wanted business to “serve the public good” • In 1904 Roosevelt’s administration filed 44 suits against trusts that were forcing companies to give discounts, selling inferior products or competing unfairly • In 1903 the Elkins Act forbade shipping companies from taking rebates, and in 1906 the Hepburn Act authorized the ICC to set railroad and ferry rates.

Protecting Consumer and Environment • In his book The Jungle , Upton Sinclair exposed unsanitary and unsafe practices in American meat packing and food processing plants. • In 1906 Congress passed the Meat Inspection Act and the Pure Food and Drug Act designed to inspect and regulate food and drugs. • Roosevelt set aside nearly 150 million acres as forest reserves and created the National Park Service to protect parks and monuments. • In 1872 Congress approved Yellowstone as the first area of national distinction.

Taft Takes Office • In the 1908 election President Roosevelt threw his support behind his secretary of War William Howard Taft. • Taft continued the work of Roosevelt by filing 90 new antitrust lawsuits and extending the ICC’s power to include regulation of telephone and telegraph companies. • Taft was also partly responsible for the 16th Amendment, known as a graduated income tax • Dollar Diplomacy was a policy adopted by President Howard Taft to encourage investment by American banks and businesses in Latin America and the Far East. As part of the policy he promised military protection to those who invested abroad.

Taft Angers the Progressives • Despite his reforms Taft lost favor with progressive leaders starting in 1909. • Taft passed the Payne-Aldrich Tariff which raised prices on imported goods and in turn raised prices on all goods in America. • Progressives argued that high tariffs hurt theAmerican consumer, raising prices on goods. • Taft also supported the sale of federal lands in coal-rich Alaska. Progressives saw the sale as hurting the environment.

Election of 1912 • Frustrated with Taft’s political mistakes, Theodore Roosevelt returned to politics and ran against Taft for the Republican nomination • Although Roosevelt won almost every state, Taft supporters refused to allow Roosevelt’s delegates at the Republican convention and Taft received the party nomination. • Roosevelt countered by running under the Progressive party, but with Republican votes split, a Democrat Woodrow Wilson was elected

Reforms of Woodrow Wilson • Wilson’s first act as President was to lower tariffs lowing prices and helping poor Americans • Wilson created the Federal Reserve in 1913 which created a board in charge of setting interest rates and a central fund which banks could borrow from. • Wilson took on businesses with the Clayton Antitrust Act in 1914, stopping businesses from selling below cost to drive out competition or buying stock of a competitor and legalizing strikes and protests.

Social Issues affecting Women • Many young women chose to work in factories that made textiles. • These young ladies often times were young and single • Many times their income for doing the same job as a man remained lower than men’s wages.

Struggle for Women’s Suffrage • Many organizations opposed women’s suffrage, the liquor industry thought women would press for prohibition and business knew women would push for labor reform. • In 1914 Alice Paul started a second suffrage organization the National Women’s Party. • Paul lead suffragist in round the clock protest outside the White House in 1917. • Paul and NAWSA leader Carrie Chapman Catt continued their struggle until in 1920 the 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote • Susan B. Anthony was a leading force in the women's suffrage movement for 50 years. Susan’s image has been placed on a coin (SBA Dollar) to recognize her efforts.

Progressive Era Amendments 16th: income taxes (the purpose was to raise revenue for government programs and reduce reliance on tariffs) 17th: Direct Election of Senators 18th: Prohibition 19th: Women’s Suffrage

The Progressive Era