A Fierce Discontent: The Progressive Movement

The build-up of tension arose from unfair taxes and violations of democracy through political and monetary policies. Many saw these violations

The Progressive movement was a period of widespread social activism and political reform across the United States. This period of time focused on improving society in the United States—who needed to see change after the negative nation that was brought forth by the Industrial Revolution. The Industrial Revolution shifted the United States to a manufacturing economy where products were no longer made solely by hand but by machines, which introduced pollution and hardships for workers. Workers frequently suffered from health problems due to malnutrition, and as cities grew during this period of time there wasn’t enough housing for all the new inhabitants, which affected living conditions for workers. In the workplace, vast quantities of pollution

Between 1880 and 1910 progressivism was the improvements and progress of the United States of America by the expansion of democracy and achieving economic and social fairness. During that period of time progressivism was an opportunity for the government to create reforms at national and international measures. Such as: Child Labor Law of 1887 and the prohibition. The strength of progressivism came from farmers, politicians, and middle class workers. Progressivism is truly how the government regulated, got involved, and changed aspects to improve the country.

During the late 1800’s a seemingly impossible uphill battle for equality and rights gained a new ally in the Progressive Movement, whose main goal was to enact reform in a practical, plausible way. Before this Movement social conditions were worsening across the United States and inequality in politics ran rampant, to spread the news of this new forms of media and campaigning arose, and after the Progressive Movement ran its course it left a drastic imprint on the history of American reform. This era is famous for its changes and philosophies that governed America and its people such as the argument between Conservationists and Preservationists or the issue of tariffs that had persisted since the birth of the United States, but what the Progressive

Rose Hernandez Professor Flowers History 106 15 October 2015 The Progressive Era In the 1920s, America entered a new movement that dealt with finding solutions to society’s problems. Fair wages for the working class, better living standards for the working and poor, and rights for women were hot button issues that Progressives tried to fix. During that time, books such as Bellamy’s Looking Backward and Riis’s How the Other Half Lives exposed what they considered was the main problem that caused America’s social problems. Both authors wanted to shed light on what they have witnessed and give out solutions to repair the damage society suffered from.

After the Civil War, our country was battered and beaten, but it rebuilt itself over time and spread its policies, as well as manufacturing practices, throughout our country. Early in the 20th century, members of our nation started to look at some of these practices and policies and began to question their merit and whether they assisted our population or not. Many people were involved in the progressive movement in America from the presidents to a slew of popular authors and photographers. The one thing that they had in common was that they saw problems with how various industries in our nation performed that they knew needed to be fixed. They did not always agree on everything, such as immigration, but they always had the nation’s best interest at heart.

In the period between 1900 and 1920, the federal government and reformers were very successful in bringing social, economic, and political reform to the federal government. While not every aspect of it was successful, the rights of women, fighting against child labor and limiting the control of trusts and monopolies were three distinct successes of that time. Even before the progressive era, women challenged their place and articulated new visions of social, political and economic equality. The progressive era was a turning point for women as organizations evolved fighting for equal rights. Woman began to become very involved in a variety of reform movements.

The “Progressive Movement was an early-20th century reform movement seeking to return control of the government to the people, to restore economic opportunity, and to correct injustices in American life.” (Danzer R54). The Progressive Era marked the end of the “Gilded Ages” and a start of a new era. The Progressive Era started in 1901 in the United States (Fagnilli 26). There were many major reforms in the Progressive Era that altered and advanced American society.

At the beginning of the Progressive Era, 1890, the reform efforts were primarily to “clean up the nation’s cities,” but as the momentum cycled into full swing it turned into a much larger project than originally anticipated (Schultz 2014). The two main groups who were involved were the followers of Social Gospel and women, but later, as interest increased Progressivism found its way into political circles and other forums. The middle class was especially attracted to the idea, but only if it did not intrude on their everyday lives which turned out to be impossible. Moreover, as it grew it changed shape to influence how administrators were selected, how our education systems developed, and it aided in improving the workforce community. The primary reason for the spread of Progressivism throughout the nation was by the media, otherwise through journalism (Schultz 2014).

From 1896 to 1924, America went through a period known as progressivism in which people of all walks of life banded together to oppose conservatism and reform society. Progressives generally believed that government is necessary for change, however; it had to more significantly embody the ideals of democracy. Some of the specific changes that progressives wanted were regulating railroads, a direct election of senators, graduated income tax, limited immigration and eight-hour workdays. By supporting these changes, the progressives hoped to promote and expand democracy and thus give the people more power.

The early 1900s were a time of widespread social and political change in America. During this time, many Americans adopted new, more modern ideas about labor, cultural diversity and city life. Some of these Progressive ideas were brought about by the need for reform in the workplace due to the grown of large companies and rapid industrialization. Not everyone supported the ideas of the Progressive Movement, however. Anti-Progressives, especially in the South, preferred traditional, rural lifestyles, and a slower, simpler way of living.

The progressive era which lasted from 1890-1920 in American society was the institution of radical reforms brought about by the millions of Americans involved in volunteer organizations across the country. During this time Americans worked to create solutions to the problems caused by the rapid industrialization and urbanization of the country. The progressive era was not a single movement, but rather a collection of movements all of which were intended to improve the lives of Americans. This was a truly remarkable time for women and the end of the era would see almost universal women’s suffrage with the passing of the nineteenth amendment in 1920.

There was many ways our culture was influenced by the progressive movement. Some where movements for women and civil rights to environmentalism, immigration, antiwar activism, and gay rights. Many leading progressive political leaders in the past were reactionary and pushed for issues of race and gender to be addressed. At the same time, the seeds of the great civil rights triumphs of the 20th century came from within progressivism itself (Halpin, 2010 pg.1). The roots of modern liberalism with which we all know today started in the Progressive Era.

Women in the Progressive Era The Progressive Era was a time of change across America, a time when the country chose to reform into an industrialized urban country. Prosperity was widespread across America, so people turned to social issues to try to expand. Minorities in particular became a focus of this time period, and everyone tried to find a way to integrate them into society.

The author, in an attempt to champion the migrant families, interjected the poor quality of work provided by “city kids” who did more socializing that work. Images of fields full of weeds in the thoughts of the Williams brothers warmed them to the idea of hiring the immigrant families. An empty pasture with a clear pond became the campgrounds for the new employees. Eventually, the Williams brothers inspected the fields and to their amazement saw not only fields clear of weeds, but hand cultivated rows of soybeans. The immigrant workers had exceeded the expectations of the owners.