Progressives 1890-1920

What is a Progressive? A progressive is a person that is trying to: Protect social welfare Improves moral improvement Creates economic reform Fosters efficiency Muckraker- a person that writes/shows where the problems are but does not have an answer on how to fix the issue

Social Welfare Helps people around them: (poor, working conditions, etc.) Places to help: Settlement houses (Hull House) Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) allowed people to read, had classes, allowed for physical development.

Moral Improvement Morality improved the lives of poor people. Prohibition- banned alcoholic beverages Led people to bad decisions and spending all of their money Key People: Carry A. Nation wanted to end alcoholism and carried a hatchet into saloons.

Economic Reform Define capitalism: Problems: Positives People questioned the fairness of the economic system. Socialism- is the belief major companies are owned by the government and not by individuals Positives: Key person: Eugene V. Debs created the Socialist Party

Fostering Efficiency Wanted to make the workplace more efficient “More bang for your buck.” Scientific Management- application of science to get a better response in production Example: Unions: Groups that would support workers by giving a better salaries, benefits, and work place conditions. Louis Brandeis- helped Unions to limit the 12-16 hour work day. Cited that ill health and injuries were a reason not to have those long days. Florence Kelley- Also helped children in the work place citing that they were getting hurt and should be in school

Cleaning Up Government State legislatures used to elect Senators Seventeenth Amendment- Allowed people to directly elect their senators. Why an improvement? Initiative- bill originated by the people rather than lawmakers Example: Recall- Enabled voters to remove elected officials Referendum- vote on an initiative

Section 2. Women in Public Life- Education Women generally worked on the farm and had to gradually get jobs in factories Women were not allowed to go to college because of fear of a “feeble” mind. First colleges were Oberlin College and Vassar College (which allowed women to teach)

Women and the Right to Vote Women were not allowed to vote or hold property. Women worked for suffrage. Key women: Susan B. Anthony- was arrested over 12 times just trying to get in line to vote. Key groups: 1. NACW- National Association of Colored Women- allowed African-American women to vote 2. NAWSA- National American Woman Suffrage Association 19th Amendment will allow for Women to vote in 1920

Teddy Roosevelt and the Square Deal TR rose up through the ranks after the Spanish-American War and became president after McKinley was assassinated Became President at 42 years old (youngest until JFK) Very charismatic; lots of leadership Called his Domestic Agenda the Square Deal Also known as the 3 C’s Control of Corporations Consumer Protection Conservationism

Controlling the Corporations Many trusts were lowering product standards but raising prices TR did not think that all trusts were harmful; rather he would look at the entire company If the company was unfair he would take them to court and break the company up EX: Microsoft 1902 Coal Strike talked to owners and mediated between owners and coal workers Sided with the Unions and Unions gained a lot of power

Protecting the Corporations The Jungle by Upton Sinclair brought consumer protection front and center Found that owners would do damage to the meat or it was not clean. Because of The Jungle the Meat Inspection Act was passed. Used to protect the consumers by cleaning the meat more TR also passed the Pure Food and Drug Act Halted the sale of contaminated foods and medicine and had to label the food and drugs

Conservation Most people thought that the natural resources were endless in the US TR thought that if the US didn’t do something soon the natural resources would disappear TR set aside 1.5 million acres of water power sites and 148 million acres of forests EX: Yosemite

Roosevelt and Civil Rights A lot of racism during the era of the 1900’s African Americans lost the case Plessey v. Fergusson Plessey was on a train and tried to ride in the white only section Court ruled that ethnicities were could be separated as long as “Separate but Equal” was used. Two new theories came up about racism

Dubois and Washington WEB DuBois Mixed race First African-American to graduate from Harvard Wrote the Souls of Black Folk Believed that segregation should stop immediately and 10% of African Americans should get their rights now. Created the NAACP- National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Booker T. Washington Believed that African Americans had to earn their rights Wanted African Americans to get an education Became known as the Wizard of Tuskegee Started Tuskegee Institute to teach mechanics and agriculture

Taft and Progressivism Taft was hand-picked by TR to succeed him Raised the tariff with the Payne-Aldrich Tariff Taft also got rid of a lot of the federal lands that TR protected Taft also tried to get rid of all monopolies TR was upset and tried to run in the 1916 election

1912 Election Four major people running Democrat- Woodrow Wilson Bull-Moose (Progressive)- TR Republican- William H. Taft Socialist – Eugene V. Debs

Wilson and the New Freedom First president from the south since before the Civil War Created the Federal Trade Commission- investigated corporations that practiced unfair business practices Clayton Anti-trust Act- sought to give more punishment of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act Created a new Tax System and cut tariffs Created the Federal Reserve System- which helped to protect the US Banking system. Federal Reserve gives loans out to regular banks to protect from going bankrupt 19th Amendment was passed under Wilson