Progressive Americans
Main Concept
During the Progressive Era, several key Americans have a profound impact on American society moving forward.
Jane Addams
In the late 1800s and early 1900s, America saw one of the largest booms in immigration in the history of the nation.
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Addams, responding to the needs of immigrant women, opened the "Hull House" in Chicago - which spread to other cities as well.
The Hull House was a "Settlement House" which would take you in, teach you a skill (job), and the culture of the American society.
Addams wanted to focus on women due to the fact that men were targeted for industrial work almost immediately upon arrival into the United States.
William Jennings Bryan
Bryan was a
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Farmers often were not making any money at all - since the rates to ship their crops back East cost so much.
Bryan was the champion for the Populist cause. Bryan would run for office in 1896 - losing the presidential election to William McKinley. However, the point of Bryan's "Cross of Gold" speech had been heard - and the farmers would benefit as a result.
John Dewey
Dewey, an educator at heart, wanted schools to be set up to learn by experience. Cooperative learning, group work, hands-on learning was at the root of Dewey's system.
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No longer would only the elite (the wealthy) go to school. Now, skills would be taught that would allow the learner to enter the workplace. This revolutionized the purpose of education.
Robert LaFollette
"Fighting Bob" was the governor of the state of Wisconsin, and later a United States Senator.
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LaFollette formed the Progressive Party in 1924. He was anti-Trust (monopolies) and big business. This followed the Teddy/Taft/Wilson years and actually made the Progressive Party a political force in America.
LaFollette served in many ways as a watchdog for the
Teddy Roosevelt and the Progressives paved the way for future political activism. In the early 20th century the Progressive movement captured many people because of its benevolent nature. This ideal led to an emphasis on increased government regulation and control, and it transitioned into an almost depression era necessity. This movement is now characterized by President Obama and modern day liberals, who once again emphasize the importance of a strong centralized government on the pretense of benevolence. Although Progressivism is characterized by the urge to help better society, it is often translated into big government and sometimes unneeded regulation.
During the progressive movement a wave of social activism and political reform swept the nation. Between monopolies, corruption and new activism for women's suffrage along with civil rights, the 1890s to 1920s was a time of advancement in thinking. Ida B. Wells made many significant contributions to the future of women and Black Americans. Initially during reconstruction after the civil war, along with the passing of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments, African Americans had been hopeful for equality. Moreover, around the time of the progressive era, they had been faced with horrific violence, economic struggles and enforcement of segregation.
With that being clear, it is understood that the Hull House was a new idea and that impelled a synthesis between ideal political and social factors together. Addams’s agreed with the idea that social classes depend upon one another. After traveling abroad and coming back to the United States, Addams’s creation of the Hull House was a completely new and original idea brought upon the whole
The Progressive Era is unique in that this impulse spread to foster an all-encompassing mood and effort for reform. The immigrant "Quandary" was handled for the most part by white, middle-class puerile women. Many of these female reformers had been inculcated in the incipient women 's colleges that had sprung up in the tardy nineteenth century. Possessing an edification yet barred from most professional vocations, these women took to "Sodality building" as an expedient to be active in public life.
The Progressive Movement of the late 1800's and the early 1900's was one of the most influential political movements in American history. The Progressives sought to shift power away from political elites and into the hands of the citizenry (Howell, 2011). Progressive reformers did not limit their efforts in improving urban conditions and to reform political systems. Their ideas influenced business and educational practices. They attempted to improve the overall quality of life for many Americans.
Although the Progressive movement was highly influenced American politics, it was only effective during the terms of certain presidents and over certain people. Presidents such as Theodore Roosevelt, William Taft, Woodrow Wilson, and Franklin Roosevelt were all presidents that used the Progressive movement to influence American politics. They all believed that moral reform, an expansion of democracy, and regulation of the economy was the goal for America. Throughout all of their terms, each president changed and added to American society and politics based off of the Progressive view. Theodore Roosevelt was the first Progressive president who made huge adjustments to the American political system while in office.
Jane Addams once firmly stated, "Unless our conception of patriotism is progressive, it cannot hope to embody the real affection and the real interest of the nation. " Her mission was to keep the people 's interest in the eyes of the country and to help them progress as a society in the wake of the corrupted Gilded Age. With the American people in the grasps of big industries and immigrants looking for a better life struggled in a nation where the dollar sign was held over politicians and the middle class and poor people, they needed help. Jane Addams, a kind woman who established a settlement house for the poor nineteenth ward of Chicago, had an astounding influence upon American society through social reforms in urban cities and influence
In order to do this, they created settlement houses which allowed reformers an opportunity to realize what changes needed to be made in the area. These houses were also used to hold meetings and provide free healthcare to the residents. In 1889 in Chicago, Jane Addams founded the most renowned settlement house, known as the Hull House. The majority of the residents were women who lobbied for the government to pass better construction and safety regulations, created a better process to collect garbage, and eliminated prostitution by shutting down red-light districts. While the Women's Christian Temperance League was developed to push for local, mandatory temperance education in alcohol, there were also efforts to reduce alcohol consumption by the men in the urban neighborhoods.
She was the co-founder of the Hull House along with a woman named Ellen Gates Starr. The Hull House was a place where recently immigrated citizens went to learn how to function in American society. While immigrants were at the Hull House they were taught how to be able to cook and what their rights and responsibilities of citizenship in America were. They were also able to learn about hygiene. They were submerged in American culture until they were able to live on their own in America.
Living in the 1920s was a struggled with attitudes of racism and discrimination towards immigrants whom people blamed for many social and economic problems. Both in modern times and in the 1920’s there was a lot of discrimination against immigrants entering the United State. The United State at first had welcomed immigrants into the country to help develop its growing potential; however, this policy changed when the immigrant population dramatically increased. They started to not like it and think that the economic problem and the issues they had been because of immigrants and African Americans are causing these economic problems.
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.
“Martin Van Buren was the eighth president of the United States from 1837 to 1841. He was one of the founders of the Democratic Party, and he was known as the “Little Magician” to his friends and the “Sly Fox” to his enemies because of his skill as a politician” (britannica.com). Martin worked at his father’s [tavern], which was [visited often] by lawyers and politicians. Martin Van Buren was a great politician and an even better president. Martin Van Buren worked in his father’s tavern as a child.
3. The American people began to embrace the role of government during the progressive era to address poverty, poor health, violence, greed, racism, and class warfare. The American people came to understand that government was best positioned to improve education for regular Americans, protect them from street gangs and mobsters, ensure that that the workplace was safe, and that government was not rampant with corruption. As example, the FDA was created during the progressive era because of horrible things happening in the meat industry during this period in American
Jane Addams The Progressive Era, 1890-1920, accomplished great change in the Unites States of America. Many reformers and activits demanded for change in education, food and drug policies, and most importantly the govermenet. The goal for the movement was the purify the nation. One of the main activits during this time was Jane Addams. Jane Addams is often refered to as a social and political pioneer.
Dewey examines why education is fundamental to the nature and perpetuation of any human community, however humble or vast it may be in size and scope of activity. According to Dewey, education is decisive for renewal of human culture and