The Progressive Movement

The Progressive Movement

Reform effort that sweeps the nation between 1900-1920

1. Not just one goal or movement

2. Want to better life for all in the United States

Progressives seek a more democratic government, a check on corporate power, and solutions to social problems

Women Get Involved

• Why are women so attracted to the Progressive Movement?– Reform work provides women with a way to

influence social change– One of the few career opportunities open to

college educated women

Progressive Journalists

• Known as muckrakers– Exposed political and corporate corruption,

difficult working conditions, crowded slums and racial injustice

• What is an example of a muckraker that we have talked about?

• Progressive writers and intellectuals publicized social problems and offered theories on how to solve them…

Reforming the New Industrial Order

Triangle Shirtwaist Fire

Reforming the Workplace

• Who worked in the factories?

• What was life like for these workers?– Triangle Shirtwaist Fire

• Progressives sought laws to end child labor, limit working hours, raise wages and improve safety

The Supreme Court

• Business owners take fight Progressives all the way to the Supreme Court

Business owners fight Progressives all the way to the Supreme Court

On the grounds of property rights and freedom of contract, the Supreme Court struck down

much- but not all- progressive legislation

Labor Unions

• Some want to replace capitalism with an economic system that workers controlled– Many favor socialism. What is socialism?

• The AFL: American Federation of Labor• The IWW: The Industrial Workers of the World• The AFL worked within the system and focused

on skilled workers, while the IWW opposed capitalism and focused on unskilled workers

Reforming Society

Reforming City Life

• Progressives sought to clean up the cities by enlarging the function of governments to include housing standards public health

• What were cities like during this time?

Urban Moral Reform

• Reformers sought to improve American morals by working for prohibition and censorship of movies

The Limits of Progressivism

• Black leaders and organizations such as the NAACP and the National Urban League fought for racial justice. But racism continued to haunt American life.

• For nonwhites, the Progressive movement had mixed results– More concerned with the plight of the poor,

than with minorities– Draw on Progressive ideas to develop

programs for their race

Immigrants and Assimilation

• Immigrants supported progressive reform on practical health and welfare issues

• Progressives sympathize with the plight of the immigrants– Still often criticize the immigrants,

accusing them of immoral behavior– Many Progressives express racist

viewpoints– Others welcome the diversity