The Progressives1889-1916

What was Progressivism?

An effort to impose order & justice on society that was approaching chaosWhat created the chaos?

Rapid industrializationUrbanizationImmigrationLaissez faire

Who were the Progressives?

White ProtestantsAfrican AmericansMiddle classCollege-educated professionalsScholars, writersPoliticiansUnion leaders

What did Progressives

believe?Society was capable of improvementGrowth and advancement were the nation’s destinyWhat didn’t work?

Laissez faireSocial Darwinism

Direct, purposeful human intervention in social and economic affairs was essentialGOVT ACTION NEEDED!

Progressives wanted MILD reforms. They were NOT RADICALS

Varieties of Progressivism

AntimonopolyFear of concentrated powerUrge to limit/disperse authority & wealth

Social cohesionWe are part of a great social webEach person’s welfare is dependent on the welfare of society as a whole

Faith in KnowledgeApplying the principles of natural and social sciences to societyKnowledge can make society equitable and humane

Modernized govt must play important role

The MuckrakersCrusading journalistsExposed scandal, corruption and injusticeTargets:

TrustsPolitical machinesFactories

The Social GospelSocial Justice

Justice for all of societyEgalitarian societySupport for the poor and oppressed pplAmerican Protestant movement

Social justice and sacrifice should be foundation of society

Salvation ArmyFusion of religion and reform

The Social GospelCharles Sheldon: In His Steps (1898); “What would Jesus do?”Walter Rauschenbusch: all ppl should work toward creating the Kingdom of God on EarthFather John A. Ryan: expand Catholic social welfare organizations

Settlement House Movement

Influence of the environment on the individualCrowded immigrant neighborhoodsStaffed by educated middle class teaching middle class valuesYoung college womenSocial work

The Allure of Expertise

Enlightened experts should run govt and economyScientists and engineersThorstein Veblen

The ProfessionsNew middle class emergesIndustries: managers, technicians, accountantsCities: commercial, medical, legal, educational servicesNew technology: scientists, engineersRequires schools and teachers to train themEducation and individual accomplishmentsWomen in the “helping” professions

The ProfessionsCreated professional organizations

Why?Set up standards to secure positionLend prestige to professionKeep #’s down to ensure high demand

AMA (1901); medical schoolsBar associations; law schoolsChamber of Commerce (1912); schools of business

Women and Reform

The “New Woman”1. Vast majority of income-producing work

outside of the home2. Children going to school earlier & longer3. Technological innovations impact the home4. Families are smaller5. Living longer6. Some shun marriage7. Divorce rates increase

The ClubwomenWomen’s clubsFirst social but then concerned w/ social bettermentNon-partisan (Remember, couldn’t vote)Middle to upper class women (clubs had $$)Allowed women to create a public space for themselves w/o threatening male dominated societyWomen’s Trade Union League (WTUL) (1903)

Join unions, support strikes, picket lines, bail money

African Americans excluded

Women & Social Justice

NY Women’s Trade Union League & Intl. Ladies Garment Workers Union

1909: 50 hour workweek, wage increases, preferential hiring for union members

1911: Triangle Shirtwaist Fire (NY)146 female workers killed; avg age 19

Reformers, union leaders, women’s groups, politicians from Tammany Hall

Machine politicians & progressive reformersLaws regulating fire safety, equipment, wages and hours for women and children

19th Amendment provides full suffrage to women in all the states, 1920.

Woman SuffrageRadical idea: it was a “natural right”

Led to a powerful anti-suffrage movement; a threat to the “natural order”Looseness, promiscuity, divorce, child neglect

20th CenturyNational American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA)Justify suffrage in a “safer” way

NAWSA RhetoricNot challenging the separate sphereBecause they ARE mothers, wives and homemakers

Bring special experiences and sensitivities to public life

Would help temperance movement (largest supporter)Would help war become a thing of the pastConservative Argument

If blacks, immigrants and other undesirables have the vote, then…educated “well-born” women should

Suffrage Timeline1848: Seneca Falls1890: Wyoming1910: Washington1911: CA1913: IL (1st state east of Miss. River)1919: 39 states1920: 19th AmendmentAlice Paul: Not enough; Equal Rights Amendment

Controlling the Masses: Prohibition

1873: Women’s Christian Temperance Union

Francis Willard1890s: Anti-Saloon League

Local level: isolate “wet” areasState level: Use of direct democracy

1913: Lobby for AmendmentImpact of entry into WWI1919: 18th Amendment

Controlling the Masses: Immigration Restriction

EugenicsImmigration polluting the nation’s racial stockCarnegie Foundation: turn eugenics into a method for altering human reproductionRaces and ethnic groups gradedSterilization1916: “The Passing of the Great Race” (Madison Grant)Dillingham Commission

Supporters of Eugenics

The Assault on the Parties

Reforming the CityMuckrakers roleMiddle class blamed

machine politicianssaloon ownersbrothel keepersbusinessmen connected to political machines

CityCommissioner Plan

Cities hired experts in different fields to run a single aspect of city government. For example, the

sanitation commissioner would be in charge of garbage and sewage removal.

City ManagerPlan

A professional city manager is hired to run each department of the city and report directly to the city

council.

City Reforms

New Forms of Governance

1900: Galveston, TX tidal waveCommission Plan

1908: Staunton, VACity-Manager Plan

Plans promotes efficiency/undermines patronage of machineOld system benefitted the working class; new ones were controlled by new professionals

New Forms of Governance

Non-partisan mayoral electionsMayoral elections moved to off-election yearsWard (neighborhood) elections switched to citywide elections

Progressive MayorsHazen Pingree (Detroit): 1889-96Samuel Jones (Toledo); 1897-1903Tom Johnson (Cleveland); 1901-09

Recall

Allows voters to petition to have an elected representative removed from office.

Initiative

Allows voters to petition state legislatures in order to consider a bill desired by citizens.

ReferendumAllows voters to decide if a bill or proposed

amendment should be passed.

Ensures that voters select candidates to run for office, rather than party bosses.

State Reforms

Secret BallotPrivacy at the ballot box ensures that citizens can cast votes without party bosses knowing how they voted.

Direct Primary

Robert La Follette & the Laboratory of Democracy

Wisconsin governor, SenatorDirect primaries, initiatives and referendumsRegulated RRs and utilitiesWorkers’ compensationInheritance taxIncreased taxes on RRs and business

Parties and Interest Groups

Decline of party of influenceVoter turnout decreases

Why?Secret ballotIlliteracy among immigrantsInterest groups

17th Amendment: Direct election of Senators

Thomas Nast was the artist for Harper's Weekly

in the late 1800s. Father of American

Caricature." Nast's campaign against New York City's political boss William Tweed is

legendary Nast's cartoons depicted Tweed as a sleazy criminalTweed was known to say,

"Stop them damn pictures. I don't care

what the papers write about me. My

constituents can't read. But, damn it, they can

see the pictures."

Social Tensions in an Age of Reform

African Americans and Reform

Contradiction b/w progressive rhetoric and their conscious discriminationFearful of interracial alliance under populism1890s south: Jim Crow, voter restrictionsMississippi Gov. James Vardaman

Booker T. Washington

Atlanta CompromiseSelf-improvement firstEquality laterBy turn of century: challenge to Washington and structure of race relations

W.E.B. Du BoisHarvard grad1903: Souls of Black Folk

Trade school vs. university educationFight for civil rights; don’t wait for white to rescue them1905: Niagara Movement1909: NAACP

NAACP SuccessesNAACP attorneys1915: Guinn v United States

Grandfather clause unconstitutional

1917: Buchanan v WorleyResidential segregation unconstitutional

LynchingNAACP wanted federal law against lynchingIda Wells

NACWWomen’s Convention of the National Baptist Church

Challenging the Capitalist OrderRadical Reformers

The Dream of SocialismRadicalism: 1900-14

Socialist Party of AmericaEugene DebsUrban workers, intellectuals, tenant farmers1,200 public offices; 79 mayors in 24 statesPublic ownership of utilities, 8 hr workday, pensions

Limitations of Socialism

Need for basic structural changes in economyDiffered in extent of those changes and the tactics necessary to achieve them

Allow small-scale private enterprise but nationalize major industriesElectoral politics vs. direct militant action

Moderates dominated (workers’ comp and min. wage)Opposed WWI; hurt the PArty

The “Wobblies”Industrial Workers of the World (1905)Utopian state run by workersBlacks, immigrants and women; unskilled laborRejected political action; favored general strikesUncompromising1917 timber strike

William “Big Bill” Haywood

But most progressives believed capitalist system could be reformed from within

Reformers pushed for the government to play an active role in planning and regulating economic lifeSUPERVISION, CONTROL and REGULATION

McKinley Assassinated!

Sept. 14, 1901

Theodore Roosevelt

Harvard: 1876-1880

NY Assemblyman: 1882-4

North Dakota Rancher: 1884-6

US Civil Service Commissioner: 1889-

95

NYC Police Commissioner: 1895-

7

Assistant Secretary, US Navy: 1897-8

Rough Rider: 1898

NY Governor: 1898-1900

Vice President: 1901

Republican Party leaders thought that the vice presidency would be a political dead end

President 1901-1909

“The unscrupulous rich man who seeks to exploit and oppress those who are less well off is in spirit not opposed to, BUT IDENTITCAL WITH, the unscrupulous poor man who desires to plunder and oppress those who are better off.”

A “Square Deal”Controlling corporationsConsumer protectionConservation of natural resources

Roosevelt’s Vision of Federal Power

Govt should have power to investigate the activities of corporations and publicize the results1903: Dept of Commerce and Labor1903: Elkins Act

Illegal for RRs to give or shippers to receive rebates

1906: Hepburn ActIncreased power of ICCOversee RR rates

TR as Trust BusterCentralization was a fact of modern life“good” vs. “bad” trustsJ.P. Morgan’s Northern Securities Company“Send your man to my man and they can fix it up.”1904: Supreme Court decision

“Square Deal” for Labor

1902: Anthracite Coal Strike in PA (May through Oct.)

20% wage increase; 8 hour day, recognition of union

TR supported workers; owners refused to compromiseTR threatened to send in 10k fed. Troops to seize the mines and resume work.Workers got: 10% wage increase, 9 hour day BUT no union recognition

Caring for the Consumer

1906: Meat Inspection Act

Federal inspection of meatThe Jungle

Pure Food and Drug Act

Crime to sell adulterated food or medicineCorrect and complete labeling of ingredients

Roosevelt and Conservation

Used executives powers to restrict private development on govt land1907: conservatives restricted his authority over public lands; he just seized all forests in public domain before bill became lawConservationist

Promoted policies to protect land for careful MANGAGED DEVELOPMENT

1902: Newlands Act

Roosevelt and Preservation

NaturalistsJohn Muir and the Sierra ClubAdded to the National Park System

Hetch Hetchy Controversy

The Panic of 1907Bank run and recession blamed on TR’s “mad” economic policyJ.P. Morgan to the rescueUS Steel purchased Tennessee Coal and Iron Co.TR promises to look the other wayCrisis avertedRepublican conservatives couldn’t stand TR

TR and Taft

1904 promiseTaft: trusted ally of TRProgressives loved himEasily defeat Bryan in 1908 electionToo lazy and introvertedStatus quoLacked personality

Taft as Trustbuster90 lawsuits in 4 yearsCompared to TR’s 44 in 7.5 years1911: Supreme Court breaks up Standard Oil1911: Taft brings suit against US Steel for its purchase of the Tennessee Coal and Iron Co

TR upset

Taft and the Progressives

TariffProgressives: deep cuts to the “Mother of Trusts”1909: Payne-Aldrich Bill; betrayal

Ballinger-Pinchot DisputeTaft replaces Sec. of Interior w/ corporate lawyer BallingerBallinger accused of turning over public coal land to company for personal profitPinchot went to Taft; Taft said nothing wrongPinchot goes public and gets fired

Theodore Roosevelt atOsawatomie, KS: New

Nationalism

Big business requires big government.

Is TR’s hat in the ring?

Antitrust lawsuit against US Steel in Oct. 1911Robert La Follette’s nervous breakdown in Feb 1912Announces candidacy in Feb. 1912