2. Political Reform
3.
- Progressives saw political corruption as both a cause and a
symptom of the growing urban disorder .In thisThomas Nastcartoon, a
pack of vultures waits out a storm.The vultures have the heads of
the infamous Boss Tweed and his gang.Boss Tweed was William Marcy
Tweed, leader of the Tammany political organization that controlled
the Democratic Party in New York City in the late 1800s.The Tweed
Ring grew rich and powerful through its control of New York City
expenditures and the patronage jobs it could give loyal Democrats
.But in part because of Nasts cartoons, public anger was roused
over Tweeds criminal activities.In time, this storm of outrage on
the part of Progressives and others drove Tweed from power and,
ultimately, to prison.
4. A Group of Vultures Waiting for the storm to Blow Over Let Us
Prey
5. Walter Rauschenbusch (1861-1918). Social Gospel challenged
laissez-faire Gospel of Wealth, the intellectual justificationsof
privilege and wealth in the19th century .The church must transform
society as well as save individual souls. 6. Progressive leader
Father John A. Ryan.
- The Catholic church, too, produced important Progressive
leaders such asFather John A. Ryan (protected Catholic immigrant
workers) , who sought to prevent the exploitation of working men
and women many of them Catholic immigrants that produced poverty
and political corruption.1930 photo.
7.
- People select political candidates
- Replaced aspoils system with a state civil service , and pushed
through regulations for factory safety, railroads, and public
utilities.
Robert La Follette at his desk in 1906. The best known
Progressive reformer at the state level wasRobert La
Follette(1855-1925)of Wisconsin. 8.
- Thomas Loftin Johnson(1854-1911), a Progressive mayor of
Cleveland, Ohio, from 1901 to 1909,
- Fought for public ownership reducing the costs of essential
services , such as transportation, and electric and gas
utilities.
9.
- An urban reform demanded most frequently by city dwellers was
thereform and professionalization of city police forces . Here, one
of New York City's Finest poses for the camera in 1907.