*Progressivism, 1890-1920*

Can politics fix social problems?

Essential Question: Can politics fix social problems?

Vocabulary:muckrakerdirect primaryinitiativereferendumrecall suffrageprohibition

I. The Roots of Progressivism

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The Rise of ProgressivismWho were progressives and what did they believe caused social problems?

□ Collection of different ideas/ activities

□ Not an organized political movement with specific set of goals

□ Reaction to the effects of the era of rapid industrialization, immigration, and urbanization

□ Wanted to improve society (make progress, move society forward)

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Who were the progressives?□ I.A. Urban, educated, middle-class Americans

from both political parties

□ Thought government should take a more active role in solving society’s problems, but that government had to be fixed before it could be used to fix other problems.

□ I.B. Strong faith in science and technology; thus, progressives believed using scientific principles could solve society’s problems.

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The Muckrakers□ First to articulate

progressive ideas□ Were journalists who (I.C.)

wrote about political corruption and social problems to expose wrongdoings

□ Teddy Roosevelt named them. Thought they were obsessed with corruption and scandal 5

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Lincoln Steffens• Investigative reporter, Steffens’

book, The Shame of the Cities, dealt with political decay in America.

• Reported on vote stealing and other corrupt political practices of political machines.

Charles Edward Russell• Investigative reporter, Charles Edward Russell

is perhaps best known, for his series of articles about the Beef Trust that were published as The Greatest Trust in the World (1905)

Reforming GovernmentHow did progressives hope to make government more efficient and responsive to citizens?

□ Making government efficient■ Frederick W. Taylor’s The Principles of Scientific Management

(1911): company could increase efficiency by managing time, breaking tasks down into small parts, and using standardized tools

■ II.A. Cities should use scientific techniques, with experts playing the major roles. □ Political favors = inexperienced officials, inefficiency□ Proposals to reform city government using experts to play a

major role in managing the city. Another solution was to weaken political machines by having officials elected city-wide instead of by neighborhoods.

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Reforming GovernmentHow did progressives hope to make government more efficient and responsive to citizens?

□ Democratic Reform■ II.B. Many believed that the key to improving

government was to make elected officials more responsive and accountable to voters.

□

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Wisconsin’s Reform Governor□ Robert La Follette of Wisconsin (3 term

governor) --> became a “laboratory of democracy”

□ Attacked the way political parties ran their conventions. Party bosses controlled the selection of convention delegates and the nomination of candidates.

□ La Follette pressured the state legislature to pass a law requiring parties to hold a direct primary, in which all party members could vote for a candidate to run in the general election.

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More Power to Voters

Direct PrimaryVoters select party candidate

InitiativeCitizens place an issue before

voters/legislature for approvals

ReferendumVoters approve/reject a law

passed by legislature

RecallRemove elected official before

term is up

State Reforms□ More power to

voters□ III.C. The

Seventeenth Amendment provides for the direct election of Senators by the people.

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Woman SuffrageWhat problems did social-welfare progressives attempt to reform?

□ III.A. The goal of the suffrage movement was achieving full voting rights for women.

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The Leaders….

Early movement□ American women first

demanded the right to vote in 1848 at the Seneca Falls Convention in New York

□ Also abolitionists, ending slavery became the priority

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Suffrage Movement□ 1872 Stanton led a

group of women to the polls in Rochester, NY where they insisted on voting

□ She was arrested for illegally casting a ballot in the presidential election

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Pushing for Federal Amendment was Difficult□ First introduced in 1868□ Stalled and was reintroduced

in 1878 made it to committee

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Split into two groups

National Woman Suffrage Association □ based in New York City□ founded by Elizabeth Cady Stanton &

Susan B. Anthony in 1869□ refused to endorse 15th amendment

because it did not give women the ballot.

□ III.B. The NWSA wanted to focus on passing a constitutional amendment.

American Woman Suffrage Association□ based in Boston□ founded by Lucy Stone & Julia Ward

Howe in 1869□ argued that once the black man was

enfranchised, women would achieve their goal.

□ III.B. The AWSA wanted to win women’s rights at the state level

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Groups united in 1890 to form the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA). Women needed right to vote to promote Progressive reforms and pass labor laws. Women began lobbying lawmakers, organizing marches, and delivering speeches.

Woman Suffrage, 1869-1920

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Suffrage at the Turn of the Century□ By the time of

the NAWSA founding, women had won many rights

□ Married women could buy and sell property

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Suffrage at the Turn of the Century□ The beloved leaders of

the movement, Stanton and Anthony died in 1902 and 1906

□ Did not see life’s work realized

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It was time for a new generation to take on the cause of women’s suffrage.Next generation of leaders…

A New Generation□ One leader who

emerged to re-energize the movement was Carrie Chapman Catt

□ She headed the NAWSA and focused on precinct by precinct political work

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A New Generation□ Alice Paul learned

aggressive tactics from suffragists in England like hunger strikes

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□ The Congressional Union (CU) headed by Alice Paul called for an aggressive, militant campaign for Constitutional Amendment

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Protest at White House…

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□ Went to jail□ Went on hunger

strikes to protest their treatment

How did the NAWSA feel about the CU’ plan?□ Their aggressive

tactics would hurt the movement

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Impact of World War I

The entrance into WWI helped the women’s suffrage movement because many women helped with the war effort and did men’s jobs when they went to war

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Victory for Suffrage□ III.C. the

Nineteenth Amendment granted women the right to vote

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What progressive goals did suffragists believe they could achieve if women had the right to vote?

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Reforming SocietyWhat problems did social-welfare progressives attempt to reform?

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Social Problemscrime illiteracy

child labor

health & safety

alcohol abuse

Reforming SocietyWhat problems did social-welfare progressives attempt to reform?

Child Labor□ John Spargo’s 1906 book, The Bitter

Cry of the Children

□ IV.A. Laws set a minimum age and the maximum number of hours a child could work.

□ At the same time, many states began passing compulsory education laws, requiring young children to be in school instead of at work. 36

Reforming SocietyWhat problems did social-welfare progressives attempt to reform?

Health and Safety Codes□ Workers’ compensation laws established insurance funds that employers financed.

Workers injured in accidents received payments from the funds.□ Zoning laws for commercial, residential, or other development, thereby regulating

how land and buildings could be used. □ Building codes set minimum standards for light, air, room size, and sanitation and

required buildings to have fire escapes. □ Health codes required restaurants and other facilities to maintain clean

environments for their patrons.

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Reforming SocietyWhat problems did social-welfare progressives attempt to reform?

The Prohibition Movement□ Settlement house workers, employers concerned about

alcohol abuse. Temperance movement advocated people stop or moderate alcohol consumption.

□ 1874 Woman’s Christian Temperance Union □ When the temperance movement began, it

concentrated on reducing alcohol consumption. Later it pressed for prohibition.

□ IV.B. Prohibition laws banned the manufacture, sale, and consumption of liquor.

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Reforming SocietyWhat problems did social-welfare progressives attempt to reform?

Progressive vs. Big Business□ Sherman Antitrust Act in 1890, □ Interstate Commerce Commission in 1887 to regulate

railroads □ Some advocated SOCIALISM:

■ What is socialism? IV.C. It is the idea that the government should own and operate industry.

■ Eugene V. Debs, American socialist candidate for president in 1912; most Americans believed in free enterprise

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How did Progressives hope to solve problems through political

reform?

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Summary:Government reforms improved city government, gave women the right to vote, and gave voters the direct primary. Societal reforms included child and adult labor laws, as well as Prohibition. □

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What would a progressive muckraker try to reform today?

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17th Amendment

• The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each state elected by the people thereof for six years and each Senator shall have one vote 43

Progressive Legislation: New Constitutional Amendments

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16th Amendment• The Congress shall

have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration.

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Tax Rates today…

17th Amendment

• The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each state elected by the people thereof for six years and each Senator shall have one vote 47

18th Amendment

• Prohibited the production, sale, or transportation of alcoholic beverages in the United States

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19th Amendment

• Women win the right to vote!!

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