Muckrakers- Journalists who exposed problems in society Ida Tarbell- abusive practices of Standard Oil Trust Lincoln Steffens- corruption in government Upton Sinclair- working conditions/ food sanitation
JACOB RIIS- using photography to show the plight of the urban poor
(NOTES): Making government more “democratic”
Reforms making gov’t more “democratic” On the state level: – Initiative- CITIZENS make gov’t vote on an issue – Referendum- CITIZENS vote on a law itself – RECALL- voters can remove elected officials
On the national level 17 th AMENDMENT: – Direct election of US Senators – (Before 1913, state legislators chose- lots of power to party bosses and big business)
What might be appealing about Communism to the Progressives?
Upton Sinclair Writes the Jungle about meat packing industry President Roosevelt reads… demands action 1906 Meat Inspection Act 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act- “truth in labeling”
Margaret Sanger Arrested for…..
Writing about birth control…. She believes it’s necessary for the equality and health for women… How so? Why do you think this was considered “obscene”?
Women’s Suffrage… Background review Elizabeth Cady Stanton… Lucretia Mott Susan B. Anthony, Carrie Chapman Catt (NAWSA) vs. Alice Paul- Nat’l Women’s Party (radical) 19 th Amendment
What is the message of this cartoon? How is Temperance typical of a Progressive movement?
Prohibition Women’s Christian Temperance Union… Anti-Saloon League… Prohibition Party… 18 th Amendment Bans manufacture, distribution, sale, consumption of alchohol
CHILD LABOR Keating-Owen Act (1916)-outlaws child labor in industries engaged in interstate commerce – declared unconstitutional By 1929 every state had a provision banning children under fourteen from working.
African Americans- pretty much ignored by “Progressives” DuBois Harvard educated Northerner Focus: FULL EQUALITY NOW for African Americans Creates NAACP- fights for equality in courts Washington Southerner Former slave Focus: surest way for blacks to gain equal social rights was to demonstrate "industry, thrift, intelligence and property.“ Education; economics Forms Tuskegee Institute in Alabama
An important political aim of the Progressive movement was to 1.guarantee government jobs for the unemployed 2.stimulate democratic reforms such as the initiative and the referendum 3.create a unicameral national legislature 4.increase the participation of African Americans in the Federal Government
In the early 20th century, muckrakers were able to influence American society mainly through their 1.frequent acts of civil disobedience 2.activities as government officials 3.publication of articles and books 4.control over factories
How the Other Half Lives, Jacob Riis (1890) The Jungle, Upton Sinclair (1906) The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck (1939) Unsafe at Any Speed, Ralph Nader (1965) What has been the impact of these authors and their books on American society? 1.Most Americans have developed a preference for escapist and romantic literature. 2.Most American authors have adopted a con- servative viewpoint 3.American business has corrected poor condi- tions quickly. 4.These works have had significant influence on social, political, and economic reforms.