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IB APUSH |
Chapter 20
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The Progressives |
Navita Garib
2-26-2013
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Progressives had a variety of ideas on how to intervene and reform. One powerful impulse was the popular idea of “antimonopoly” which was the fear of concentrated power and the urge to limit and disperse wealth and power. Social cohesion was another impulse that believed that the welfare of single person isdependent on the welfare of society. Another impulse was society’s faith in knowledge. They believed that a modernized government could play an important role in the process of improving society. Muckrakers were crusading journalists who exposed social, economic, political injustices and corruption. At first they targeted trusts and railroads which they considered powerful and deeply corrupt. One of themost famous was Ida Tarbell’s study on Standard Oil. Later, their attention turned toward the government, especially political machines. Lincoln Steffens’ writings helped arouse sentiment for urban reforms. The muckraker’s moralistic tone prompted outrage at social and economic injustice. This led to rise of the Protestant Social Gospel which was a fusion of religion with reform. Progressivesbelieved that the environment influenced individual development. In order to help the distressed, the conditions must first be improved. People believed that the crowded immigrant neighbors created distress. The creation of settlement houses was a response. The most famous was Jane Addams’ Hull House in Chicago. It sought to help immigrant families adapt to language and culture. It was a belief thatthe middle-class had responsibility to share values with immigrants. College educated women were often involved in the settlement house movement; movement helped spawn profession of social work. In the late 19th century, more people engaged in administrative and professional tasks (managers, scientists, and teachers). This new middle class valued education and individual accomplishments. As thedemand for professionals increased, so did their desire for reform to create organized professions. Some women encountered obstacles in entering professions, but many women from the women’s colleges did enter “appropriate professions” such as settlement houses and social work, teaching, and nursing.
A “new woman” was the product of all the social and economic changes. Wage earning activity had movedout of house and into factories or offices. Children were enrolled in school at earlier ages and technology (running water, electricity) made housework less of a burden. There was a decline in family size and “Boston marriages” occurred. In the late 19th/early 20th century, there was a rise of women’s clubs. These were networks of associations that led to many reform movements. General Federationof Women’s Clubs (GFWC) was at first cultural, but then later focused on social betterment. The women’s suffrage movement at first advanced through arguments that women deserved same “natural rights” as men, however, opponents said society needed distinct female “sphere”. In the early 20th century suffragists were more organized. Anna Shaw and Carrie Chapman Catt formed the National AmericanWoman Suffrage Association (NAWSA). In 1910, Washington extended suffrage to women. He was more hesitant in the East because of the associations with ethnic conflict (Catholics) over temperance movement. In 1920, the Nineteenth Amendment was ratified guaranteeing female political rights. Some feminists felt like the victory seemed less than complete. They (including Alice Paul’s Woman’s Party) wantedto fight on for an Equal Rights Amendment to prohibit all discrimination based on sex.
In the late 19th century, populism and the rise of Independent Republicans had attempted to break party lock on power resulting in the secret ballot. They argued that party rule could be dealt with by increasing the power of the people and the ability to express their will at polls, and also put more power in...