Reform shifts from the farm to the city and climbs the ladder of government from the local to the state and then to the national level.
The average life expectancy was 47 only 14% of the homes had a bathtub only 8% of the homes had a telephone. A 3 minute call from Denver to NYC cost $11.00 Maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 m.ph. Alabama, Mississippi, Iowa, and Tenn. were more heavily populated than California
The average wage in the U.S. was.22 cents an hour the average worker made b/w $200 and $400 per year More than 95% of all births in the U.S. took place at home sugar cost.04 cents a pound; eggs cost.14 cents a dozen Most
Drive by shootings - in which teenage boys galloped down the street on horses and started randomly shooting at houses, etc. - were an ongoing problem the population of Las Vegas, NV was 30 Scotch tape, crossword puzzles, canned beer, and iced tea hadn ’ t been invented There was no mother ’ s or Father ’ s day
One in ten U.S. adults couldn ’ t read or write. Only 6% of all Americans had graduated high school Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were available over the counter at corner drugstores. One pharmacist said, “ Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the stomach and is, in fact, a perfect guardian of health ”
Huge Gap between rich and poor Tremendous economic and political power of the rich Wealthy were insensitively flaunting their wealth before a poorer public
Industrial workers hideously poor, living in squalor and working in dangerous conditions Jacob Riis’ How the Other Half Lives (1890) Little concern for Black America
WHO? “ Progressives ” urban middle-class: managers & professionals; women WHY? Address the problems arising from: industrialization ( big business, labor strife) urbanization (slums, political machines, corruption) immigration ( ethnic diversity) inequality & social injustice (women & racism) 1920s1890s WHEN? “ Progressive Reform Era ”
WHAT are their goals? Democracy – government accountable to the people Regulation of corporations & monopolies Social justice – workers, poor, minorities Environmental protection HOW? Government (laws, regulations, programs) Efficiency value experts, use of scientific study to determine the best solution Pragmatism – William James, John Dewey ( Darwinism) (Cf. scientific management/Taylor) HOW MUCH?????
“ Muckrakers ” Jacob Riis – How the Other Half Lives (1890) Ida Tarbell – “ The History of the Standard Oil Co. ” (1902) Lincoln Steffens – The Shame of the Cities (1904) Ida Tarbell Lincoln Steffens
The “Social Gospel” movement --Walter Rauschenbusch: Christianity and the Social Crisis (1907) Settlement House Workers --Jane Addams, Hull House in Chicago (1889) Americans of “Old Wealth”
Young, socially- conscious lawyers Investigative Journalists -- “Muckrakers” --Lincoln Steffens, Ida Tarbell, and Upton Sinclair Small businessmen
Desire to remedy problems through government initiative Reliance on “experts” -- Robert Lafollette’s “Wisconsin Idea” Wanted reform not revolution Stressed the importance of efficiency in reform --Frederick W. Taylor
Want to bring order out of chaos --Creation of NCAA in 1906 Desire to make politics more democratic Desire to make businessmen more responsible for problems
Desire to make society more moral and more just Desire to distribute income more equitably Desire to broaden opportunities for individual advancement Women were active in progressivism --Suffragettes like Susan B. Anthony
Infiltrated both political parties -- Republican “insurgents” Middle-class reform movement Operated on all three levels of government
Tried to put more power into the hands of the people Innovative changes in city government --city managers and commission model The Direct Primary Initiative, Referendum and Recall The Secret Ballot Direct Election of Senators and the Vote for Women
Child labor laws Ten-hour work days --The “Brandeis brief” --Muller v. Oregon (1908) --Bunting v. Oregon (1917) Prohibition initiatives Moral Purity campaigns --Mann Act (1910)
Minimum safety standards on the job Minimum standards for housing codes “City Beautification” movement Immigration Restriction Eugenics --Buck v. Bell (1927) Little Help for Blacks --NAACP (1909) -- “Birth of a Nation”
Progressive reliance on the law 16 th Amendment (1913)—federal income tax 17 th Amendment (1913)—direct election of senators 18 th Amendment (1919)—prohibition 19 th Amendment (1920)—vote for women
Great drive, energy and exciting personality TR’s interests and early years NYC police commissioner Spanish-American War experience -- “Rough Riders” Political Rise from NY Governor to Vice- President
McKinley’s assassination Offered energetic national leadership Cast every issue in moral and patriotic terms --The “Bully Pulpit” Master Politician Modest goals for his “accidental” presidency
TR’s attitude toward Big Business Wants to regulate in order to get businesses to act right The “Square Deal” (1902) Making an example of the Northern Securities Co. The Elkins Act (1903) and the Bureau of Corporations
More vigorous progressivism Hepburn Act (1906) Federal Meat Inspection Act (1906) Pure Food and Drug Act (1906) Conservation Policy --Preservation vs. Conservation
The Election of 1908 Taft’s political experience Taft’s weight Not a dynamic politician Never completely comfortable as President
Controversy over the Tariff More conservative than TR, but also more trust suits The “Ballinger- Pinchot” Affair Growing tension with Teddy Roosevelt
Growing split within the Republican Party Creation of the “Bull Moose” Party Progressive Party Platform: “New Nationalism” Democrats drafted Woodrow Wilson Results of the Election
Wilson’s early life and political career True progressive and dynamic speaker Sympathetic to small businessmen Could be a stubborn, moral crusader and ideologue
Wilson’s brand of progressivism Wants to recreate the “golden age” of small American businesses Wilson wants to open channels for free and fair competition Historic Jeffersonian approach to federal power
Underwood Tariff Act (1913) Federal Reserve Act (1913) Clayton Anti-Trust Act (1914) Federal Trade Commission (1914)
Wilson was not a strong progressive when it came to social reform Congress takes over the progressive agenda Appointment of Brandeis to Supreme Court Examples of congressional progressive legislation after Federal Highways Act (1916)
Progressive movement peaks by 1917 Success of the movement led to its decline Advent of World War I also hurt progressive activism Progressives themselves began to weary of their reform zeal—as did the nation as a whole Ironically, voter participation has steadily declined since the election of 1912