Emergence of the Modern United States

The Progressive Era:The Drive for Reform

1890 - 1920

Bellringer

Which of the following statements do you most agree with? EXPLAIN YOUR ANSWER.

A. It is the role of government to ensure the health and welfare of all citizens.

B. It is the role of private organizatinos and charities to ensure the health and welfare of all citizens.

C. It is the role of both government and private organizations to ensure the health and welfare of all citizens.

Learning Targets

I can…• Describe the various reforms of

the Progressive Movement (e.g., workplace, environmental, economic)

• Describe how Progressive reform transformed American culture and society

Origins of Progressivism

• Progressives shared a belief that industrialization and urbanization had created social and political problems

• Progressivism was a reform movement that wanted to get rid of corrupt gov’t officials, make gov’t more responsive to people’s needs, and eliminate the abuses of big business

• Led by the middle-class, believed that lleaders should use modern ideas and scientific techniques to improve society

Targeting the Problems

• Government– Political bosses used bribery and violence to win

elections– Corrupt & ineffective gov’t led to a lack of

adequate services and wretched living conditions

• Big Business– Wanted to bust up big business trusts to give

more opportunities to small businesses– Wanted to reduce the gap between wealthy and

poor– Attack harsh working conditions– Wanted welfare laws to help children

The Need for Reforms• Socially conscious journalist and writers

investigated the problems in America; became known as muckrakers– Muckrakes were used to clean poop out of animal pens

• Revealed political corruption and the conditions of people living in slums and tenements

• Writers worked to put a human face on social problems by portraying the struggles of common people

• Work of muckrakers increased popular support for Progressivism– Promoted laws to improve living conditions, public

health, schools, and regulate businesses

Progressives Reform Society

• Many thought Christianity should be the basis of social reform– Social Gospel: people can make the kingdom of

God by following the Bible’s teachings about justice and charity

• Believed it was important to improve the lives of the poor

• Efforts made to end child labor and improve education

• Laws are passed to improve working conditions, adopt workers compensation, and limit the workday to 10 hours

Reforming Government

• New city govts are created to curb the power of bosses and their political machines– City govts purchase utilities so residents don’t

have to pay unfair rates

• Citizens are able to vote for nominees for upcoming elections– Initiative, referendum, and recall adopted– Direct election of senators by the voters (17th

Amendment)

• Progressive governors take over in many states, instituting major social, political, and economic reforms

Independent Work

• Complete expository reading and answer questions

• If you finish, continue working on your unit vocabulary

Exit Slip

Disasters like the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 and the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire of 1911 spurred government reforms.

• How have present day disasters demonstrated a need for government reform? (Think about things that you’ve seen in the news in the past few months)

The Progressive Era:Women Make Progress &

Discrimination

1890 - 1920

Learning Targets

I can…• Explain the efforts of women in calling for

reform in the areas of education, children’s rights, temperance, and suffrage

• Identify how immigrant groups, as well as Native Americans and African Americans, were discriminated against in the early 20th century

Bellringer

The Progressive Era was a time of great change in society and politics in America, but not everyone benefitted.

What obstacles do you think women might have had to overcome to gain rights during the Progressive movement?

Progressive Women Expand Reforms

• In the early 1900s women wanted to expand their role in the community– For most women this meant working outside the

home for long hours in dangerous conditions– Women were frequently cheated and bullied by their

employers• National Consumers League (NCL) is founded to

promote goods produced under fair, safe, and healthy working conditions– Also backed laws calling for the gov’t to inspect

meatpacking plants, make workplaces safe, and make payments to unemployed

Progressive Women Expand Reforms

• Temperance Movement – practice of never drinking alcohol– Led to the passage of the 18th Amendment, banning

the sale and consumption of alcohol• Margaret Sanger opens the country’s first birth

control clinic– Thought family life and women’s health would

improve if they had fewer children• National Association of Colored Women (NACW)

is created by black teacher Ida Wells– Raised money to set up daycare centers for black

parents while they went to work

Women Fight for the Right to Vote

• Women argue the only way to ensure fair treatment is to make give them an equal say in gov’t – the right to vote (suffrage)

• National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA)– Called on women to lobby Congress for the right to vote– Urged women to push for a referendum to pass state suffrage

laws• Some women worked against suffrage, believing it would

take women away from family and volunteer work• National Women’s Party – founded by Alice Paul

– Used public protest marches– Picketed outside the White House– The 19th Amendment is passed and on Nov. 2, 1920 women are

able to vote for the first time in a U.S. presidential election.

Progressivism Presents Contradictions

• The Progressive era wasn’t that progressive if you were an immigrant or a non-white.– Settlement houses taught immigrants how to be more

American (this is called assimilation)– Wine or beer with dinner was customary to many immigrants,

but many reformers thought it was immoral and led to more prejudice

• Many reformers believed non-whites weren’t smart/civilized enough to participate in society– Formation of Jim Crowe Laws

• Plessy v. Ferguson– Led to legalized segregation

African-Americans Demand Reforms

• Booker T. Washington advised blacks to move slowly toward racial progress– Believed blacks would gradually win white’s respect

• W.E.B. Du Bois and others urged blacks to demand all of their constitutional rights immediately– Called themselves the Niagara Movement

• Springfield Riots lead to formation of NAACP• Urban League serves as settlement houses for

blacks

Reducing Prejudice and Protecting Rights

• Anti-Defamation League created in 1913– Defended Jews and others against verbal attacks, false

statements, and secure justice and fair treatment for all citizens

• Mexican Americans formed mutualistas• Asian immigrants are denied the right to vote and are

unable to own land– Put land in their children’s names (born in America) to

avoid having to sell• Native Americans were not helped by Progressivism at

all– Society of American Indians created in 1911 to preserve

culture, help natives, and avoid gov’t dependence

Independent Work

• Complete video worksheet• Work on unit vocabulary when finished

Exit Slip

1. How did women of the Progressive Era make progress and win the right to vote?

2. What steps did minorities take to combat social problems and discrimination?

Teddy Effin’ Roosevelt

Bellringer

Write down every thing you know about Theodore Roosevelt.

Learning Targets• Analyze how Theodore Roosevelt changed

government’s role in the economy and the environment

• Compare and contrast Taft’s policies with Roosevelt’s

Rise to the Presidency

• Served on N.Y. Assembly before finishing law school• Wife and mother both die….on the same day• Moved out West, but returned as N.Y.C Police

Commissioner• Named Asst. Secretary of the Navy by President McKinley• Fought in Spanish-American War• Elected Governor of New York• Became Vice President under McKinley• McKinley is assassinated, Roosevelt becomes President

The Square Deal

• Used office of President to convince Americans of the need for change and push through reforms

• Called his program The Square Deal– Kept the wealthy and powerful from taking

advantage of small business owners and the poor– Fair government for all, no handouts– Everyone has an equal chance to succeed

Trustbusting and Regulating

• Used the power of federal government to regulate industries• Helped establish Dept. of Commerce and Labor to monitor

big business and prevent them from abusing their power• Made Congress pass the Hepburn Act, allowing gov’t to

regulate shipping costs on railroads• Pushed Congress to pass the Meat Inspection Act to monitor

potential health risks• Pure Food and Drug Act that was similar to the Meat

Inspection Act• Enforces the Sherman Antitrust Act

– Broke up bad trusts, but supported good ones

Managing the Environment

• Held a deep reverence for nature• Closed off more than 100 million acres of

forestland for national forests• Believed the forests should be:– Conserved (resources managed and used wisely)– Preserved (Left untouched)

• National Reclamation Act gave federal gov’t power to decide where and how water would be distributed– Build and manage dams and reservoirs

Roosevelt vs. Taft

• Roosevelt leaves office after two terms• Uses his power to help Taft become president

– Expected Taft to continue his reform programs• Taft sets his own agenda

– Pushes for more gov’t control and trustbusting– Allowed legal monopolies as long as they weren’t

“unreasonable”• Roosevelt speaks against Taft, splits the Republican

Party• Roosevelt and Progressives leave Republican party and

form the Progressive Party

Exit Slip

Write one paragraph telling me what Roosevelt thought government should do for citizens and give specific examples.