The Big Ideals of Progressivism

I was looking at all the blogs, and realized we have many posts about foreign affairs, but few regarding another huge topic of this unit – Progressivism.  In this blog I will go over some of the big ideas and groups that go along with this big idea.

            The big idea from the progressive movement was “to use government as an agency of social welfare.” Many groups and forms of progressive movements stemmed from this idea. 

Social Gospel: This group took Christian teachings as a sort of grounding to push for better housing and living conditions for the poor.

Muckrakers:  This derogatory term referred to American press who would expose corruptions in everything from politics to city life.  They were most effective in the area of social evils.  They strongly believed the best way to fix society’s woes was to arouse public conscience, in contrast to drastic political change.

Progressivism in Politics, pushed for all of the following–

            Initiative: Voters directly proposing legislation rather than through a boss corrupted state legislature

            Referendum: Placing proposed laws on the ballot for direct approval from the people

            Recall: Enabling voters to remove elected officials in office

            Australian Ballot: Having a secret ballot, in which other people could not see who you are voting for, in attempt to cut down on bribing

            Seventeenth Amendment: Direct election of US senators

What about women?

            Women did begin to obtain the right to vote in some states, but any other opportunities of political involvement for women were non-existent.  One group named the settlement house group helped expose middle-class women to many problems in America such as poverty, corruption, and bad city life.  This caused many of these women to join the settlement progressive movement. They also focused more on women’s and children’s health.   This, along with some other women’s activist movements, was important for getting women involved in big social and even economic issues, staging the way for eventual political involvement.

            Florence Kelly is one name to keep in mind with this whole women’s movement.  She advocated improved factory conditions.

            In the famous Muller vs. Oregon (1908) the Supreme Court ruled supplemental laws protecting women in factories were constitutional.  It also closed many what were considered “male” jobs to women.

            The Woman’s Christian Temperance Union pushed for dry laws, which would abolish or restrict alcohol in various parts of the United States. 

What was progressivism like on the local level?

            Many cities adopted new organizations referred to as city-manager systems.  These groups, while they did take some power away from the people, would allow for a controlled organization of cities, in everything from city planning to maintaining (or creating) a clean water supply. 

           

And the state?

            Many states created public utility commissions, which would regulate much of what the city could not.  This would include railroads and trusts. 

Theodore Roosevelt’s “Square Deal”: This presidential program pushed what was dubbed the three C’s: consumer protection, conservation of natural resources, and control of the corporations. 

            This was put into action with the coal strike of 1902.  Roosevelt, the first president to ever respect union organization, brought together the coal miners and the owners to work out a deal, so the company would be back to work in time for winter.  Roosevelt mandated a compromise that gave the factory owners a wage increase, increased safety conditions in the mines, and shortened the workday.

            I hope this gives a good overview of some of the big progressive movement of the early 1900s.  As always feel free to add or revise anything as necessary.  Here is a question to ponder: Was Roosevelt leaving out any major reforms in his “Square Deal,” or did he properly address what was at the top of the priority list of the time?  (What about women’s rights?)